Kongwa. Namibia’s President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has pledged to help reunite children of Namibian liberation fighters with their families after hearing emotional appeals from residents of Kongwa, where many fighters once lived during the liberation struggle.
The issue emerged during her visit to Kongwa, where some children of former liberation fighters and mothers who had been separated from their children shared painful memories and longstanding appeals for reunification.
Some of the children spoke to President Nandi-Ndaitwah in a Namibian language, while several mothers broke down in tears as they recounted how their children had been taken by liberation fighters and never returned.
Moved by the testimonies, the President instructed officials accompanying her to collect detailed information about the affected families to facilitate efforts aimed at reconnecting them.
She said the process would include tracing children now living in Namibia and supporting legal arrangements to reunite families.
Among those who spoke was Nashikale Makinamala, who said his father had been among military officers based in Kongwa before returning to Namibia with him.
Makinamala said he was the eldest of three children and that after his father died during the liberation struggle, he later received support to return to Kongwa. However, he said his siblings remained in Namibia and contact with them had since been lost.
An unnamed mother, overcome with emotion, said she had not seen her son, now believed to be a doctor in Namibia, since he was a child. President Nandi-Ndaitwah embraced her and assured the families that efforts would be made to reconnect them with their relatives.
Speaking later at a memorial site where she laid wreaths, President Nandi-Ndaitwah said the relationship between Tanzania and Namibia remained deeply rooted in shared history.
“The brotherhood between Namibia and Tanzania is now one of blood ties. We remain grateful to Tanzania for allowing its land to be used in the liberation struggle for Namibia and other southern African nations,” she said.
Earlier, Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office (Policy, Parliament, Coordination and Persons with Disabilities), Professor Palamagamba Kabudi, said the lives of Kongwa residents reflected the history of the liberation movement.
He said local communities had lived alongside liberation fighters as family members and, in some cases, formed family ties that resulted in children being born, with some later leaving for Namibia with their fathers while others remained in Kongwa.
Kongwa District Council chairman White Zuberi said many families had for years been calling for help in tracing and reuniting with children who left with liberation fighters.
He said some mothers had died carrying the pain of separation, while others and their children continued to hope for reunion.
