I could not believe my ears when the Cuban Ambassador to Namibia first informed me that the ‘Cuban Five’ had been released from a USA prison and soon they would reunite with their families in Cuba and later visit Africa and Namibia in particular.
I jumped and danced to no music playing. This was good news because I was once detained in London for supporting the Cuban Five.
This is what exactly happened.I was sent by the Swapo Party to Havana, Cuba to deliver a solidarity message during the third International Youth Congress in Solidarity with the Cuban Five anti-terrorist heroes in June 2011.
I delivered the message as expected but during my flight back to Africa I was detained; first in Madrid, Spain without any proper explanation and later in London for attending and supporting the struggle for the Cuban Five. I was only released from detention after SPYL and Namibian authorities intervened.
At around 18h30 on June 17, I boarded Iberia/British Airways from Spain to London but after boarding there was an announcement by the cabin crew that the plane would only depart after 20 minutes after the scheduled flight time and thereafter 10 more minutes.
We arrived at London’s Heathrow Airport very late and I was only left with 20 minutes to connect a flight with British Airways IB 4772 to Johannesburg. Thereafter, I was told I am late and gate closed. I must sleep in the UK. I was booked at Renaissance Hotel room 2144 but first I must go through immigration. At immigration point number 8, terminal 5, that is where the real drama started and the true story unfolded.
I remember the dialogue as follows: “What were you doing in Cuba,” asked the immigration officer. “I was attending the Cuban Five International Solidarity Congress and also meeting the families of the Cuban Five in Havana,” I replied.
“Who are the Cuban Five?” he asked, to which I replied: “They are five anti-terrorist Cuban heroes wrongly arrested by the USA administration.”
“I see in your passport that you were also in Ghana. What were you doing in Ghana?” he asked.
“I was attending a meeting of the Association of All African Universities,” I said.
“What does the Cuban Five have to do with you? Are you a journalist?”
I said: “I am not a journalist but I am a member of the National Executive Committee of the Swapo Party Youth League which is a wing of the Swapo Party in Namibia.”
“So, Swapo of Namibia supports Cuban terrorists?”
“We support the Cuban Five anti-terrorist heroes and Cuba has been and remains a true friend to Swapo and Namibia as a country. After all, Cuba supported Swapo during the liberation struggle against South Africa’s apartheid illegal rule of Namibia which led to the attainment of our political independence.”
And then reality struck. “You are detained for collaborating with terrorists of Cuba,” the official declared.
I was issued with a warrant of detention and my charges were: ‘Further examination on you and your Swapo’s relations with Cuban terrorists’ and ‘You are in possession of a fake passport.’
Interestingly enough, apparently my passport number is shared with a female in Namibia. I was puzzled because I used the same passport in London before for several trips, also in some other European countries, Asian countries, Americas and in Africa and now fake.
While in detention I phoned my Cde Dr Elijah Ngurare, our youth league leader in Namibia who was in South Africa attending the African National Congress Youth League congress who later informed the Namibian authorities. My phone call was cut short by the immigration officer who informed me that I had no right to phone or contact anyone because I am in detention. I was detained for several hours.
I was not even allowed to go to the toilet.
It was after the direct intervention of Dr Ngurare, Ambassador George Liswaniso and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that I was released from detention.
Charles Siyauya
Former SPYL spokesperson