By Vitalio Angula

Friends, Family and Comrades of the Late Struggle Stalwart, Herman Andimba Toivo Ya Toivo, gathered at Heroes Acre on the outskirts of the Capital, Windhoek, on Thursday morning to commemorate what would have been his 100^th birthday.

He died seven years ago at the age of 92.

Guests included the President of the Republic of Namibia, Nangolo Mbumba, who remembered Ya Toivo as the person who recruited him into the South West Africa People’s Organisation, SWAPO (now known as the SWAPO Party) before him and many others made their way into exile to spearhead Namibia’s struggle for independence from South African apartheid rule.

“Andimba was a selfless person who got along with everybody and treated people equally regardless of their race, nationality or economic status; he was confident that young people in Namibia could be convinced to serve the nation and not just themselves and these are the virtues that Andimba embodied,” Mbumba told the gathering of over 100 who came to pay their respects to the revered struggle icon.

Former Prime Minister of Namibia, Nahas Angula, who also serves as the Chairperson of the Andimba Ya Toivo Centenary Committee informed the gathering of events that will take place throughout a twelve-month period to commemorate and celebrate the life of one of the most recognized figures in the contemporary and political history of Namibia.

“We will be launching the Andimba Toivo Ya Toivo Foundation in the coming months to fulfill the vision that Andimba had before his passing to contribute to nation building through the empowerment of Namibians who are willing to fulfill the legacy that Ya Toivo left us” Angula said.

Paying homage to her late husband, Vicki Erenstien Ya Toivo, recounted Ya Toivo’s formative years from his birth at Omangundu in Northern Namibia, to his enlistment in the Southern African Native Military Corps at the age of 17, his recruitment as a farmworker under the contract labour system and his work as a teacher before travelling to South Africa to work in the mines where he would immerse himself into the politics of the day which led him and others to establish the Ovambo People’s Congress, which would evolve into the Ovambo People’s organization (OPO) and later the South West Africa People’s Organisation, SWAPO.

“In late 1951, Andimba, together with three friends travelled from Odibo to Rundu (mainly on foot) in order to obtain employment in the mines of Johannesburg through the Witwatersrand Native Labor Organisation (WANELA)”, Vicki Ya Toivo narrated.

“His true intention was to reach Cape Town where he could attend night school while working during the day”, Vicki Ya Toivo further narrated.

She said, after a brief stint in the mines, Andimba and his companions reached Cape Town in 1952 where he found work first as a railway policeman and then as a general worker for a furniture company.

“Andimba was immediately exposed to the organisations that were committed to ending the apartheid system such as the African National Congress, the Communist Party, the Colored People’s Organisation, the South African Indian Congress, the Congress of Democrats and the Liberal Party,’ Vicki Ya Toivo recounted.

Andimba Ya Toivo was part of the movement that produced the Freedom Charter, a document that outlined the aspirational principles of freedom and democracy in South Africa during the period of apartheid.

On the African continent and internationally Ya Toivo is known for having been incarcerated at the infamous Robben Island alongside Nelson Mandela, Jacob Zuma, Jerry Ekandjo and Tokyo Sexwale to mention but a few. 

Ya Toivo’s incarceration came about as a result of his political activities in South Africa and the then South West Africa (today Namibia) which included political mobilization and petitioning the UN demanding the end of South African control over South West Africa.

“In 1968, Andimba, and 37 others were prosecuted under the Terrorism Act which was passed by the South African Parliament 10 months before their arrest”, Vicki Ya Toivo told the gathering.

“We are Namibian and not South Africans. We do not now, and will not in the future, recognize your right to govern us, to make laws for us in which we had no say, to treat our country as if it was your property and us as if you are our master”, Ya Toivo said in response to his sentencing at the trial where he boldly confronted the court on behalf of the accused who were facing death sentences as they acknowledged that the then South African authority did not have the moral right to try them.

Kadiva Hamutumwa, the President of the Namibia Exile Kids Association and one of the attendees at the gathering who came to pay her respects at the 100^th Centenary says she first learned about Andimba Ya Toivo from her mother who is a Casinga survivor.

The Casinga Massacre is a tragedy that took place in Angola where over 800 Namibian women and children lost their lives when their refugee camp was attacked by the South African army on the 04 May 1978.

“As we grew up at home, my mother would tell us about the liberation struggle for the Freedom and Independence of Namibia and their experiences before going into exile”, Hamutumwa explained.

“Comrade Ya Toivo was one of the SWAPO leaders who played a pivotal role in shaping the liberation struggle and the SWAPO Movement.

“As I grew and began to undertake my own research, I learnt of Comrade Ya Toivo’s role in the struggle and for me he struck me as someone I could compare to philosophical political leaders like Mahatma Ghandi”, Hamutumwa said.

Andimba Ya Toivo’s unique character and selfless service to his people and to the African continent has endeared him in the hearts of many people who gathered to lay wreaths and remember and honour a man whose life and legacy is etched in the contemporary history of Namibia.

Vitalio Angula

Windhoek, Namibia

24 August 2024