Namibia

Portuguese seafarers landed on the coast of Namibia at the end of the 15th century. At the Berlin Conference of 1884-1885, where the European Great Powers divided up Africa, Namibia became a German colony under the name German Southwest Africa. After diamonds were discovered in the area at the beginning of the 20th century, Europeans poured into the German colony. To allow free access to the diamond deposits, the indigenous population was forced onto reservations. 
Resistance and rebellion from the black population was crushed with great brutality. For example, a German general gave the order for the extermination of the entire Hereo tribe, who were pastoral nomads. Wells and waterholes were poisoned or filled with cement, which led to the death of 80 percent of the Herero people.
While the First World War raged in Europe, South African forces occupied the country. After the Akrikaaners’ National Party won the South African elections in 1948, apartheid was also introduced into Namibia.
During the 1950’s the Ovamboland People’s Organisation (OPO) and the South West Africa National Union (SWANO) formed, the beginning of organised resistance from the black population. In 1960 SWANO and the OPO merged to become the South West Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO) which later began three decades of armed struggle against South African rule.
Namibia gained its independence in 1990, on the same day SWAPO’s leader Sam Nujoma swore the oath as Namibia’s president. Since independence SWAPO has dominated Namibia’s political life.
Although popular support for Nujoma has been massive in every election, the government has been criticised for increasingly autocratic ways and a lack of democracy. When the government changed the constitution before the 1999 presidential elections so that Nujoma could run for a third term, a new party was formed in protest, the Congress of Democrats (CoD). Nujoma decided to not run for re-election in 2004. Instead SWAPO choose as its presidential candidate government minister Hifikepunye Pohamba. With a promise to follow the same policies as Sam Nujoma, Pohamba won the election with 76 percent of the vote
Analysis
Human rights and freedoms are guaranteed in the constitution, which also limits the power of both president and parliament to impose restrictions on those rights. The media is well-developed and plays a free and independent role. Civil society is also relatively well-developed in comparison with many other countries in southern Africa. However few of the many organisations that exist in Namibia are strong enough to influence politics. Many organisations concentrate on only one issue (often HIV/AIDS), few are grassroots-based, and most are dependent on international support.
Differences in incomes are enormous. The white minority still owns much of the most fertile land, and the uneven distribution of land is of decisive political importance. Demands have been made for the whites to sell their land to the government so that it can be redistributed to the poor.
Poverty, illiteracy and unemployment of around 40 percent have led many people from the countryside to move to the cities in search of nonexistent jobs. Urbanisation has resulted in major social problems such as increased criminality and alcoholism. Unemployment especially hurts young people, who make up 70 percent of the population.
The increasingly overshadowing problem, however, is the rapid spread of HIV/AIDS, which has affected more than 20 percent of the adult population. The political will to fight the spread of HIV/AIDS has been greater than in South Africa, for example, and as early as 1990 there were information campaigns to increase awareness about the epidemic.
Women are often the victims of violence and discrimination. The number of complaints of rapes and domestic violence havs increased. These assaults often stem from traditional beliefs in women’s subservient role to men. Other crimes against human rights have declined in recent years, but the police and military are responsible for transgressions in the form of torture, arbitrary executions, and disappearances.
Development Co-operation
The Palme Center gives direct support to the Forum for the Future, which carries out popular education projects in the entire country. The projects are intended to increase the participants’ knowledge of democracy, human rights, and current political issues (such as globalisation, regional integration, HIV/AIDS, gender equality, and the environment), which strengthens their role as participating active citizens, with expectations for responsibility.
During the war of liberation there was close co-operation between the Swedish labour movement and SWAPO. Today the labour movement has a closer relationship with the CoD, which can be described as a classic Social Democratic party. Even if the CoD is very weak compared to SWAPO, it plays an important role in the development of a multi-party state. Within the framework for party support, the Social Democratic party district in Jönköping is carrying out a project to strengthen the CoD’s local and regional structure.
The Palme Center is trying to counter the lack of political alternatives in Namibia by creating a dialogue where all parties in the country participate. Representatives from all of the major parties will be invited to Sweden to take part in discussions on the importance of political alternatives so that a multi-party democracy can function dynamically.