South-West Africa

South West Africa ( Afrikaans: Suidwes Africa; English: South West Africa ( SWA or SWA) ) was the name of Namibia during its third-party management by South Africa in the years 1918 until 1990.

Meantime, this period of the Republic of Namibia was adopted by the end of the imperial German colony of German South West Africa (1884-1919) and the political independence of the country ( since 1990).

History

The former German colony in 1919 provided a mandate territory of the League of Nations and administered by the South African Union. 1946, the area was officially converted into a Trust Territory of the UN, which would have increased the influence of the world organization, this step was ignored by the South African side that started out to incorporate the territory as a de facto part of their territory. So the white minority got the right to appoint their own representatives in the Cape Town Parliament. The UN withdrew in 1966 the Republic of South Africa 's mandate over South West Africa and put it two years later under the name Namibia, de jure under own management. After the International Court of Justice in 1971 had condemned the continuing South African presence as illegitimate, began in the mid- 70s under heavy international pressure and internal stresses a transition process that eventually led to independence in 1990 of the Republic of Namibia.

The contemporary use of the terms East Africa or West is not valued in today's Namibia. They are perceived as a sign of a nostalgic attitude towards the German colonial period and the time of apartheid.

Demography

From the Department of Statistics (1970) and according to a survey of South West African affairs, published in 1974 by the South African Ministry of Foreign Affairs the following information in accordance with the then demographic group names were announced:

Political and Administrative Structures

South Africa ruled and the territory of South West Africa / Namibia managed by its own Parliament and its ministries. For the indigenous population in Pretoria was the Department of Bantu Administration and Development responsible. The ruling National Party had in Windhoek a territorial office for South West Africa ( SWA), AH of the regional from its chairman du Plessis ran the business. There is also the South West Africa Legislative Assembly, which is similar to the provincial legislatures in South Africa and worked consisted of only white representatives was. Its chairman was Dirk Mudge. A fact elected Executive Committee ( all were members of the National Party ) was led by Eben van Zyl.

Prime Minister Balthazar Johannes Vorster appointed in 1973 in the face of political pressure from the United Nations with regard to South Africa's Namibia policy an Advisory Council with 40 members, one, the representatives of the White and Coloured organizations, representatives from the Legislativräten the Homelands and Bantu authorities for two days in a Cape Town Hotel brought together. Subsequently appointed to the continuation of this committee, the Prime Minister an employee of the SWA Administration, Billy Marais, the official representative in South Africa. It was opened for an office in Windhoek. The first regular meeting of the Advisory Council was held in Windhoek on 23 March 1973.

During the year 1983, the Administrator-General Willie van Niekerk presented a plan for the establishment of a Committee for Constitutional Development ( German as: committee to develop a constitution ). It should be composed of 50 elected and 22 nominated representatives from the 11 ethnic groups. For the September or October elections were sought for this body. However, the project has received too little support and was dropped. From the related discussion led van Niekerk a new proposal for forming a State Council in the debate, which is a group of the most important political organizations should be merged, could submit the proposals on the future constitutional order for a not yet fully independent Namibia. This State Council should work under the chairmanship of Judge Joseph Hefer, the then Chief Justice of the Transkei. In the course of the opinion it was clear that the State Council had even less representative than the resolution support (white ) National Assembly. Subsequently, the proposal was rejected.