ChiefHosea Katjikururume Komombumbi Kutako(1870 – 18 July 1970), was an earlyNamibiannationalist leader and a founder member of Namibia's first nationalist party, theSouth West African National Union(SWANU).
| Hosea Kuṱako | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leader ofOvahereropeople. | |||||
 Grave of Chief Hosea Kuṱako near Friedenskirche,Okahandja | |||||
| Born | 1870 Okahurimehi, nearKalkfeld | ||||
| Died | 18 July 1970(aged 100) AminuisReserve | ||||
| Burial | near Friedenskirche,Okahandja | ||||
| |||||
"During his life, he experienced the transition from independence to colonization, and the destruction of Herero society and the loss of its lands, although he struggled to regain the freedom andself-determinationthat he and his society had previously known. Initially Kutako campaigned only for his own people, yet at a very early stage he began campaigning for the freedom and self-determination of all the inhabitants of Namibia. In this, Hosea Kutako can be described as the country’s first truly nationalist politician, a man who strove for the greater good not only for himself but for all. Hosea Kutako was born as a Herero royal, but into a position which, but for the course of history, would never have enabled him to claim leadership of the Herero, let alone of the people of Namibia. "
Early life
editHosea Komombumbi Kutako was born in 1870 at Okahurimehi, nearKalkfeld.[1]
Career and achievements
editIn 1920, Hosea Kutako was officially appointed as leader of theHerero peopleby Frederik Maharero. Mahahero had been empowered to transfer power by his father, Herero chiefSamuel Maharero,who had been exiled after theHerero Warand was since banned from entering the country by the South African Mandatory Administration. Hosea Kutako took over his role as a commitment to preserve the memory of the Herero before and during the German colonisation as well as of theBattle of Waterberg.Theaftermath of this battlewas recognised in 2004 byHeidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul,Germany's development aid minister, as being equivalent togenocide.[2]
The seat of his Kutako's chieftaincy was situated at the settlement ofToasisin theAminuisarea.[3]
Also in 1920, he founded the Green Flags, an association to keep up tradition, and went on by founding the Red Flags in 1923, afterSamuel Maharero’s death. Kutako prompted and organised the transfer of Samuel Maharero’s body and its funeral on Okahandja next to the grave ofJonker Afrikaner.Kutako also founded theTruppenspielerassociation. It was intended to attain military importance, but this was opposed both by the South African authorities and bySam Nujoma,the co-founder of theSouth West African People's OrganisationSWAPO. So, theTruppenspielerhad to content themselves with an accompanying role atHerero Day.[1]
Kutako became deputy chief of Namibia's Traditional Leaders Council, and also became Chief of the BotswanaMbanderu peoplein 1951. Along with the BritishAnglicanpriest Rev.Michael Scott,he submitted numerous petitions to theUnited Nationsduring the 1950s and 1960s calling on the world body to end South African rule and grant Namibia independence. This eventually led to the UN's recognition of Namibia as a sovereign country under colonial administration bySouth Africaand the historic 1971 advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice that South Africa's continued administration of Namibia was illegal in terms of international law. Hosea Kutako is considered a national hero in Namibia.[1]
He died on 18 July 1970 in theAminuisReserve, in the remote eastern part of theOmaheke Regionof Namibia.[1]
Recognition
editHosea Kutako is one of nine national heroes of Namibia that were identified at the inauguration of the country'sHeroes' AcrenearWindhoek.Founding presidentSam Nujomaremarked in his inauguration speech on 26 August 2002 that:
Chief Hosea Komombumbi Kutako [...] participated on the anti colonial wars of 1904 as one of the leading commanders. He also played an historic and significant role in petitioning the United Nations Organisation demanding the placement of the then South West Africa under the United Nations trusteeship system. [...] In this way, he played a major role in Namibia's struggle for freedom and independence. To his revolutionary spirit and his visionary memory we humbly offer our honor and respect.[4]
Kutako is honoured in form of a granite tombstone with his name engraved and his portrait plastered onto the slab.[4]
Windhoek's international airport,the country's primary international airport, is named after him.
In July 2010, Kutako's former home in theOmaheke Regionwas nominated by the Omaheke Regional Council to become anational heritage site.[5]
References
edit- ^abcdDierks, Klaus."Biographies of Namibian Personalities: K".klausdierks.Retrieved1 January2020.
- ^"German minister says sorry for genocide in Namibia"(15 August 2004)The Guardian
- ^Matundu-Tjiparuro, Kae (14 January 2013)."Police implored to act against stock theft".New Era.Archived fromthe originalon 19 February 2013.
- ^abNujoma, Sam(26 August 2002)."Heroes' Acre Namibia Opening Ceremony - inaugural speech".via namibia-1on1.
- ^Chief Kutako's house could become a heritage siteNew Era,26 July 2010
Further reading
edit- Kutako's memory cast in bronzeThe Namibian,12 June 1998
- Nsanzugwanko, Deogratius (2019). "Chapter 3".Airport Mysteries: The Four Business-Class Rats and Why the Wings of Kilimanjaro Count.iUniverse.ISBN9781532061165.Note: This is a self-published source, so may not meet high standards of reliability.