SAH-1-silvester.qxd 4/29/2003 3:08 PM Page i WORDS CANNOT BE FOUND SAH-1-silvester.qxd 4/29/2003 3:08 PM Page ii SOURCES FOR AFRICAN HISTORY Volume 1 SAH-1-silvester.qxd 4/29/2003 3:08 PM Page iii WORDS CANNOT BE FOUND German Colonial Rule in Namibia: An Annotated Reprint of the 1918 Blue Book BY JEREMY SILVESTER and JAN-BART GEWALD BRILL LEIDEN • BOSTON 2003 SAH-1-silvester.qxd 4/29/2003 3:08 PM Page iv This co-publication with the National Archives of Namibia in the Republic of Namibia was made possible by the African Studies Centre in Leiden, The Netherlands. 19 African Studies Centre National Archives of Namibia This book is printed on acid-free paper. Text design by Vocking in Vorm (Utrecht); cover photography by Ivo Romein (Gouda). Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data South-West Africa. Administrator’s Office. [Report on the natives of South-West Africa and their treatment by Germany] Words cannot be found : German colonial rule in Namibia : an annotated reprint of the 1918 Blue Book / by Jeremy Silvester and Jan-Bart Gewald. p. cm. – (Sources for African history, ISSN 1570-8721 ; v. 1) Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. ISBN 90-04-12981-2 (pbk.) 1. Indigenous peoples–Namibia–Government relations. 2. Namibia–History–1884-1915. I. Silvester, Jeremy. II. Gewald, Jan-Bart. III. Title IV. Series. DT1603.S68 2003 323.1’6881’09034–dc21 2003044435 ISSN 1570–8721 ISBN 90 04 12981 2 © Copyright 2003 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Brill provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910 Danvers MA 01923, USA. Fees are subject to change. printed in the netherlands SAH-serie.qxd 4/29/2003 2:51 PM Page 1 SOURCES FOR AFRICAN HISTORY 1. J. Silvester and J.-B. Gewald. Words Cannot be Found. German Colonial Rule in Namibia: An Annotated Reprint of the 1918 Blue Book. 2003. ISBN 90 04 12981 2 JAJ 009 boek Words cannot be … 26-04-2003 16:06 Pagina v CONTENTS Preface vii Acknowledgements ix List of Illustrations xi Footsteps and tears: an Introduction to the Construction and Context of the 1918 ‘Blue Book’ xiii REPORT ON THE NATIVES OF SOUTH-WEST AFRICA AND THEIR TREATMENT BY GERMANY Preface 7 Part One: Natives and German Administration 19 Part Two: Natives and the Criminal Law 247 Appendices 321 Bibliography 357 Index 361 JAJ 009 boek Words cannot be … 26-04-2003 16:06 Pagina vii PREFACE On Sunday 6 April 2003, after conducting a church service in the informal settlement of Babilon, on the outskirts of Windhoek, I went to see a “house” of a council member of the congregation, which had just burned to the ground. As we were observing the ashes and ruins of what had once been their home, the wife said something striking which is still in my mind: Where does one start now? she asked. I just looked at her without knowing what to say. This is my reaction now, after reading the Blue Book, especially the statements under oath that reveal one long nightmare of suffering, bloodshed, tears, humiliation and death. In one of the statements under oath, Hosea Mungunda states: “…it was one continuous ill-treatment…” Yes, it certainly was! I read this book with tears and anger but also with a strengthened determination that we should make sure that these things do not happen again in Namibia and that we should commit ourselves to justice, peace and reconciliation for our country and beyond. This we do for our own sake and for the sake of generations yet unborn. The re-publication of the Blue Book of 1918 is an invaluable gift from a period in which we have mostly one-sided or vague accounts of what really happened during that time. This book offers a better and more comprehensive under- standing of the liberation struggle and the suffering of the Namibian people. What it clearly shows is that the brave struggle for liberation started in 1904 against a very brutal, imperial, and savage power. It is the continuation of this very same struggle, which erupted at different times during the course of the last century, that resumed in 1959 and culminated in independence in 1990. It is important that when this very important aspect in the history of our country is recounted and taught, that we start from the very beginning. For the sake of the present and the future it is important to know where we are coming from. The foundation of our independence lies in the tears and blood, the determination, bravery and vision of our forbearers. The railway on which we today comfortably travel in our trains was literally built with and on the blood, suffering and death of our mothers and fathers. People who know this will jealously protect what they have today. Racism, corruption, crime and violence cannot be tolerated with such an invaluable heritage for which we paid so dearly. The vision for justice, peace and a harmonious society is not only ours but also that of the many thousands who were brutally wiped out by the colonial powers. I firmly believe that, in honour of these brave women and men whose blood waters our freedom, we should completely reject racism, tribalism, corruption, crime and any form of violence, and stand up together in JAJ 009 boek Words cannot be … 26-04-2003 16:06 Pagina viii viii PREFACE a concerted effort to remove all of these evils from the face of Namibia, as we did with colonialism. In the name of the many people in Namibia and elsewhere who will appreciate the re-publication of the Blue Book and also on behalf of our children and the coming generations, I wholeheartedly thank Dr. Jan-Bart Gewald (University of Leiden) and Dr. Jeremy Silvester (University of Namibia) for the work they did to uncover “the footprints and tears, blown over by the sand.” The Introduction to the Construction and context of the 1918 “Blue Book”, and their extensive research in this regard is very helpful to the understanding and support of this remarkable book. In the same vein I also pay homage and respect to the spirit of Major T.L. O’Reilly, the Military Magistrate based in Omaruru at that time, for his commitment to justice and for his tireless efforts to provide humane treatment for the devastated people of Namibia during that period. It is indeed for my family and I, on behalf of my grandparents and great- grandparents who were part of this ordeal, a great honour to be part of the re- publication of the Blue Book and with it the resurrection of the voices of our forefathers. I am looking forward to the day of the launch of this book. For me that day will be holy, as was the day of independence. Yes, on that day in 1990 we shed tears of joy that, at last, the dark night of humiliation and death was over and that the sun was rising in all its beauty and splendour. But we also cried when we remembered the thousands of sons and daughters of Namibia who had suffered and died while resisting this brutal force of humiliation, slavery and injustice. May God bless Namibia and her children. Rt. Rev. Dr. Z. Kameeta Windhoek, April 2003 JAJ 009 boek Words cannot be … 26-04-2003 16:06 Pagina ix ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The re-publication of the Blue Book has taken far more time than we ever anticipated, and it would have taken even more time if a number of people had not provided the selfless help and assistance which they did. Werner Hillebrecht, of the National Archives of Namibia, provided us with ongoing general assistance ranging from the scanning of photographs through to discovering the original glass plate negatives of the photographs that graced the Blue Book. Casper Erichsen, as a fellow historian and friend, supported us in all manner of means, from acting as chaffeur through to being prepared to engage with the past. Mandhavela Khasera provided us with invaluable assistance with initial proof-reading of the scanned text, whilst Lovisa Ndaoya and Lovisa Nampala scanned the text. On a personal level we would like to thank a few people for providing emotional support and hope for the future, in contrast to the depressing and damaging material which we were dealing with. We would like to explicitly express thanks to Gertie and Kasai, and to our children Meta, Shelley, and Sieme in whom we see our shared futures. We have noted in the introduction that we see this re-publication as a memorial to those Namibians who died and suffered as a result of the Namibian War. At times our work on this re-publication has been brought to a temporary halt on account of the sheer immensity of what was being said. Yet, these very same intensely unsettling words ensured that we did not break off from our work. To have done so would have been to insult the past. It is thus with deep respect for those who have come before us and whose suffering is described in such graphic detail in this book that we give thanks.