Namibia is a state in Sub-Saharan Africa includes those states on the continent that are roughly south of the Saharan desert. These states are grouped together because of their common history of colonial domination, a history that influences the view of European history in general. Also, in these states, Muslims are not the majority population, or if they are, they are a slight majority, as in Nigeria, and thus there is a different level of engagement with the Holocaust than in North Africa.
NAMIBIA does not mandate the teaching of the Holocaust, however it is included in their state curriculum. The Namibia Senior Secondary Certificate, Higher Level, for History includes an in-depth study entitled Germany Between the Wars. It includes a unit on “Racism: the persecution of the Jews since 1939.” The Namibia Senior Secondary Certificate, Ordinary Level, for History includes lessons on Human Rights and World War II. Under Specific Objectives the curriculum includes, “explain why the Nazis persecuted and exterminated many groups in the German society.” read more
From January 27, to February 12, 2010, the South African Holocaust and Genocide Foundation (SAHGF) ran International Holocaust Remembrance Day activities at the State Archives of Namibia in Windhoek, a connection that led the Museum Association of Namibia to acquire a traveling version of the SAHGF exhibit “The Holocaust: Lessons for Humanity.” This exhibit subsequently toured extensively in Namibia. On January 27, 2012, The United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) office in Namibia, in partnership with the SAHGF, held a Holocaust commemoration event.
Historically, Namibia’s indigenous population experienced atrocities at the hands of the German colonizers in the early 20th century. German colonizing forces perpetrated what some scholars have called the first modern genocide, eradicating some 30,000 Herero in 1904. Until 1990, Namibia was a part of South Africa, and black Namibians suffered the oppression of apartheid.
RESOURCES
GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES ON HOLOCAUST EDUCATION: Trends, Patterns, and Practices, a publication of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Salzburg Global Seminar, 2013
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LINKS
South African Holocaust and Genocide Foundation
http://www.ctholocaust.co.za/
International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance
http://www.holocaustremembrance.com/media-room/news-archive/unesco-holds-consultation-teaching-about-holocaust-and-genocide-africa