Hi Everyone

Thank you all for your continued support with the petition.

It’s been a very hectic but meaningful couple of weeks since the petition started so here’s another update.

Youth Protest

Last Tuesday, the youth in Windhoek organized a multi-site protest against police brutality, gendered violence, and racism. One of the sites that they chose was the statue of Curt von Francois. The protest had a great turn out and I'm incredibly grateful for the independent youth activists namely, Nesindano Namises, Florence Khaxas, Nashilongweshipwe Mushaandja, Keith Vries, Ashwyn Mberi, Yatva Hinda, and Timo Shey for organising the protest.

Members of the press were there to document it and all protesters were given a platform to air their concerns about  having a colonial statue to symbolize the "birth" of this city.

Meeting with the Mayor

Last Thursday I was able to meet with the Mayor of Windhoek to formally handover the petition. She said that the City Council is having a meeting later this week where the petition and all other supporting documents will be given to the councillors so they can deliberate on the issue.

I’ve been spending the past couple of weeks gathering any data I could, both from historical books like the Kaiser’s Holocaust by Casper Erichsen and David Olusoga (highly recommend) and some other archival material and newspaper clippings about the German colonial period leading up to 1965 when the statue was erected. I am positive that whatever happens, there will be an abundance of knowledge and research to share with all of you.

Meeting the family

An essential aspect of this petition is to ensure that when the statue is removed (and potentially replaced with another)  it is accompanied with accurate historical information and cultural context. Namibia is filled with so many monuments and statues with only a couple of sentences and dates to contextualize their symbolism and meaning. This is not the intention of this petition and movement. An integral part of this process is to facilitate a platform for the forgotten and missing histories to be told. Namely the story of Josephine von Francois and her living descendants (two of whom I met in the past week in Windhoek).

Josephine von Francois was the daughter of Curt von Francois and Amalia Gawaxas  a local  Damara woman while he was stationed in Windhoek.  Josephine was present at the inauguration of the statue in 1965, and so was her German sister, Praxedis ( the daughter of  Curt and his German wife Amalie Margarethe ) who he married when he returned to Germany after his time in Namibia. While they both attended the inaugural ceremony, the sisters were never allowed to speak or meet, a missed opportunity that only reiterates the racial segregation of apartheid.

 I’m extremely grateful that the Namibian von Francois's agreed to meet with me and discuss their complex histories around the identity of their family and I hope that with continued meetings and research we are able to tell the story of von Francois’s  Namibian Descendents that is not mentioned in the history books.

Visiting Hoornkrans

About ten days ago, I went to visit Hoornkrans which is around 120 KM south of Windhoek. Today Hoornkrans ( the former settlement of Hendrik Witbooi ) is a private farm. I was able to see the monument that was put up to commemorate the German soldiers who attacked the settlement, as well as a second monument that was put up by Hendrik Witbooi’s great-grandson, Captain Hendrik Witbooi in 1997 to honour the Nama women, men, and children who were killed at the site.

I was also able to visit two graves of German Schutztruppe officers which had been erected by the colonial administration, and the unmarked graves of the Nama who were killed at Hoornkrans, which lay scattered only a few metres away.

I will be writing to the Heritage Council to ensure that the Nama gravesite is also well-demarcated and given its appropriate reverence like the other gravesites.

Lastly, I’ve made “ A Curt Farewell” Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, to update everyone on the progress of the petition as well as share useful articles, and histories that you might find interesting. You can follow it at @acurtfarewell on all three platforms, or email me at acurtfarewell@gmail.com if you have any questions,

Sincerely,

Hildegard