This marks exactly 26 years since our motherland was removed from the clutches of the deadly apartheid leadership of the former South African government. Now we celebrate peace, stability and cooperation between these countries.
Those that were in the battle had no idea if they would live to see this day, since that the battle was hard but even though the vision was blurred at the time, they fought with courage to build a better Namibia.
All fighters had only one vision and that was for an independent country. They fought bravely and even when their colleagues lost their lives in battle, they did not give up and the country was still a battlefield until March 21, 1990.
Let me briefly give you the history of this battle. Namibia became a colony of South Africa when Germany was defeated in World War 1 and they had to retreat. It was then administered as a League of Nations Mandate C territory. South Africa wanted to incorporate it into its territory, which it never succeeded in doing as our fighters persistence never allowed it.
Through it all the fighters fought bravely with fewer weapons compared to their opponents, but this did not break their faith in success. It did not blur their vision; instead they were head-to-head with their opponents.
Until 1988 the attempts to persuade South Africa to agree to the implementation of UN Resolution 435 were not successful. The full transition was deployed in 1989 and lasted until early 1990. The country officially became independent on March 21, 1990.
People were given their voices. The dark cloud that covered the Land of the Brave was lifted. Blood was shed, but all for a good cause.
That in itself was the best news a country can ever receive. If you look at the events that preceded Independence one would wonder why they never give up. We have events like the Cassinga massacre to testify for it. It shows how cold and bloody the liberation struggle was. The number of people that died in Cassinga was such a huge sacrifice for independence.
Enforced laws, apartheid, mistreatment, cold mornings without shelter, burnt houses, the killing of the innocent: these and many other events are at the root of our independence.
Let us live every day of freedom to celebrate, commemorate and pay due respect to the lives of those that died for our independence. Only they know the sweat and blood they put up for freedom. It was not easy. It was bitter, but all for a better Namibia, for freedom.
The question still stands, are we doing what those that liberated our country had in mind during that battle? In my opinion things seem to have gone astray, but we can change that by not letting the land of the brave become the land of the lazy and weaklings.
We should do something tangible with the freedom that was granted to us with others’ lives. Killings, corruption and other crimes were never part of the independence agenda.
We should start today. Make the best out of the free life we are leading now. For those who are being productive on their daily basis, keep up the productivity and know that while Namibia has you, it has life.
Happy Independence Namibia!
Monika Martin