Tomorrow, authorities and most shops in Namibia will be closed. 10 December is a public holiday (see also the article on holidays in the 'Travel Advice' section of Namibian.org), dedicated to human rights worldwide and to the Namibian women's contribution to the struggle for independence. Why? Because women played an important role in the uprising in the Old Location in Windhoek on 10 December 1959.
The inhabitants of the settlement on the western edge of the city protested against the planned relocation to a new neighbourhood 5 km north of Windhoek. They called it Katutura, in OtjiHerero "the place where there is no staying".
They were also upset because the municipality was cracking down on shebeens, small pubs that sold home-brewed beer ('tombo'). An important source of income for many women. For the municipality, it was undesirable competition for the 'beer hall' it ran.
Prelude to the liberation struggle
In a peaceful protest march, women marched first to the administrator and then to the magistrate of the mandate power South Africa in Windhoek to hand over a petition. But both refused to accept it. Back in the Old Location, the protestors decided to blockade the municipal beer hall.
When the police intervened, the conflict escalated. 13 people were shot dead, including one woman, and 44 were wounded. It was the first violent action by the apartheid regime against the resistance of the black population, three months before the massacre in Sharpeville.
For Namibia, it was the start of the liberation struggle: many leading figures, including Sam Nujoma, the later SWAPO leader and first president of the independent Namibia, went into exile to organise armed resistance.
Thus, 10 December in Namibia honours the contribution of women to the liberation struggle and is a public holiday.
Sven-Eric Stender