HISTORY: German Genocide In Namibia

GERMAN GENOCIDE

IN NAMIBIA

 

MUST-WATCH DOCUMENTARY: The Namibian Genocide

Thirty years before Hitler came to power in Germany, and about forty years before Raphael Lemkin authored the word genocide, there had already been one at the hands of Germany. This genocide did not take place in Europe. This ‘forgotten’ genocide took place in Southwest Africa, or what is today, Nambia. 

In the early 1900s, Germany invaded Namibia. This documentary from the BBC outlines the events that lead up to the deaths of at least three-quarters of the population of Herero people, and at least half of the population of Nama people.

This systematic form of ethnic-cleansing was done to create Lebensraum for German settlers, where space was running out in the over-crowded cities of urban Germany, and create a satellite state for Germany interests and prosperity.

“The dark racial theories that helped inspire the Nazis run much deeper into German and European history than most people want to acknowledge”

(part 2;3;4;5;6)

 

__________________________

 

NAMIBIAN IMPERIALISM

By Nick Kates

Early History

Not much is known about what went on in Namibia before the arrival of Europeans.  It is thought that the San people inhabited modern day Namibia as far back as 2,000 years ago (Fact Monster).  The first europeans to visit Namibia were Portuguese, who used Namibia as a place to stop over on Asian expeditions.  

Namibia was assigned to Germany at the Berlin Conference of 1883.  The territory was called Deutsch-Südwestafrika, or German South West Africa.  The Germans gradually took control of the country using various methods.  One such method was to offer "protection" in exchange for land.  This protection was called into question when Namaqua chief Hendrik Witbooi managed to steal the Imperial Commissioner's horses.  This was a real wakeup call for the Germans, and they began to use violence to obtain land.

 

 

 

 

Effects of Imperialism

Herero and Namaqua Genocide

The Herero and Namaqua Genocide was the response by German soldiers to uprisings by the nomadic Herero population (Ezakwantu).

Upon arrival in Namibia, Germans were encourage to settle on Herero land, which angered the Hereros and their leader, Chief Samuel Maherero.  The colonial government also oppressed the Hereros.  The tension boiled over in 1904 when Chief Maherero called for the offensive known as the Herero uprising.  The Hereros attacked the Germans, killing only important German men and sparing women, children, Boers, and British (Ezakwantu).  

In response, the German government replaced the more lenient colonial administrator, Theodor Leutwein, with the ruthless General Lothar von Trotha.  Von Trotha confronted and defeated the Herero at the battle of Waterberg before sending the Herero an ultimatum: get out or be rounded up and killed (Ezakwantu).

Von Trotha then turned his killer intentions towards Hendrik Witbooi and the Namaqua, who had fought with the Germans against the Herero.  The Germans defeated the Namaqua and also killed Witbooi.  Survivors were all captured.

Those captured were rounded up and sent to concentration camps at Luderitz, Swakopmund, Windhoek, and Okahandja.  The camp at Luderitz was on an island called Shark Island.  Shark Island became one of the most notorious death camps in the world.  Native peoples were shot and hung at will by German soldiers.  Over 3000 people were killed there (Ezakwantu).

This Genocide is best known for its influence on another genocide.  It is widely believed that Adolf Hitler used the Namibian extermination camps as a blueprint for his own extermination camps in the Holocaust (Ezakwantu).

Apartheid

 Picture
When South Africa took control of Namibia by direct rule in 1969, it implemented Apartheid.  However, the United Nations quickly declared the South African occupation illegal.  In the face of sanctions, South Africa was forced to adopt a much more lenient system of Apartheid in Namibia (South African History Online).

So What Was Imperialism Really Like?

Imperialism in Namibia was a different experience depending on the color of one's skin.  Whites could expect a cosmopolitan city life and access to natural resources, while Blacks experienced genocide, oppression, and apartheid.

 

 

 

 

Struggle for Independence

South Africa began occupying Namibia in 1915, but the real struggle for independence began in 1960, when the Ovamboland People's Oragnization (OPO) became the South West African People's Organization (SWAPO).  SWAPO began training a guerrilla army and won the support of other African countries as well as the United Nations.  In 1969, South Africa took control of Namibia via direct rule.  However, the UN quickly condemned this as illegal, and sought sanctions against South Africa.  This, coupled with numerous SWAPO guerrilla strikes, eventually proved too much for South Africa.  South Africa made multiple unsuccessful attempts at establishing Apartheid in Namibia.  Finally, Namibia began to become less profitable and more of a burden.  South Africa finally granted independence to Namibia in 1990 (South African History Online).

 

 

 

Namibia Today

Namibia has been a relatively peaceful country.  Apart from a minor conflict in the Caprivi strip, there have been no internal conflicts since independence.  Namibia's prospects for ecotourism seem good, considering the various ecosystems and wildlife that live there.  Wildlife that make their home in Namibia include lions, zebras, elephants, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, leopards, cheetahs, springboks, and several species of whale.

 

Works Cited 

Ezakwantu. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Jan. 2013. <http://www.ezakwantu.com/Gallery%20Herero%20and%20Namaqua%20Genocide.htm>.

Fact Monster. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Jan. 2013. <http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0107812.html>.

Government of Namibia. Government of Namibia, n.d. Web. 8 Jan. 2013. <http://www.gov.na/about-namibia;jsessionid=c9da03a87290c52f1576c61068cf>.

Namibian. http://www.namibian.org/travel/namibia/history.htm, n.d. Web. 9 Jan. 2013.

Namibiana. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Jan. 2013. <http://www.namibiana.de/namibia-information/geschichte-politik-gesellschaft/m...>.

South African History Online. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2013. <http://www.sahistory.org.za/places/namibia>.