The Namibian
Encyclopedia
The Namibian is a the largest daily newspaper in Namibia
. It publishes in English
and Oshiwambo.
in 1985 as a weekly newspaper reliant on support of donors, which aimed to promote Namibian independence from South Africa
. Its first edition appeared on 30 August of that year with a print run of 10,000. The Namibian became a daily newspaper on 1 April 1989.
On the 15th anniversary of its foundation, United Nations
Secretary General Kofi Annan
praised the newspaper: "The Namibian worked courageously in difficult and often dangerous conditions. Since then, it has contributed immeasurably to press freedom and nation-building in Namibia. Throughout, it has maintained its integrity and independent stance."
The newspaper offices were attacked by the Afrikaner
vigilante group Wit Wolwe in October 1988. The newspaper's offices were almost burned down. South Africa's Civil Co-operation Bureau planned to poison editor Lister, the paper was boycotted by the white business community, and "Journalists and sympathisers of The Namibian" were denied entry in shops all over the country.
in 1990. This unpopularity of the paper within government led to a boycott of the newspaper on 5 December 2000 which was only overturned on 30 August 2011, the 26th anniversary of The Namibian. In the more than ten years in between, government offices were not allowed to advertise in the paper, and it was forbidden to buy copies of The Namibian with government funds.
The newspaper has offices in Windhoek, Swakopmund, Keetmanshop and Oshakati. Current editor of the paper is Tangeni Amupadhi. Prior to that, up until March 2011, the paper was headed by its founder Gwen Lister. Its circulation in 2010 was 40,000.
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
. It publishes in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and Oshiwambo.
History
It was established by Gwen ListerGwen Lister
Gwen Lister, is a Namibian journalist, publisher, apartheid opponent and press freedom activist.After receiving a bachelor’s degree from the University of Cape Town in 1975, she went to work as a journalist at Namibia's Windhoek Advertiser.In 1978 she co-founded the Namibian weekly Windhoek...
in 1985 as a weekly newspaper reliant on support of donors, which aimed to promote Namibian independence from South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. Its first edition appeared on 30 August of that year with a print run of 10,000. The Namibian became a daily newspaper on 1 April 1989.
On the 15th anniversary of its foundation, United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Secretary General Kofi Annan
Kofi Annan
Kofi Atta Annan is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the UN from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2006...
praised the newspaper: "The Namibian worked courageously in difficult and often dangerous conditions. Since then, it has contributed immeasurably to press freedom and nation-building in Namibia. Throughout, it has maintained its integrity and independent stance."
Prior to Namibian independence
The newspaper exposed human rights violations by South Africa's occupying forces and was thus perceived as overly critical and pro-SWAPO by the South African government. Even the very name of the paper irritated the South African administration as they preferred the land to be called South-West Africa, whereas Namibia was a notion closely related to the independence movement.The newspaper offices were attacked by the Afrikaner
Afrikaner
Afrikaners are an ethnic group in Southern Africa descended from almost equal numbers of Dutch, French and German settlers whose native tongue is Afrikaans: a Germanic language which derives primarily from 17th century Dutch, and a variety of other languages.-Related ethno-linguistic groups:The...
vigilante group Wit Wolwe in October 1988. The newspaper's offices were almost burned down. South Africa's Civil Co-operation Bureau planned to poison editor Lister, the paper was boycotted by the white business community, and "Journalists and sympathisers of The Namibian" were denied entry in shops all over the country.
After independence
However, the critical approach of the paper was also disliked by the SWAPO government after Namibian independenceNamibian War of Independence
See also South African Border War.The Namibian War of Independence, also known as the South African Border War, which lasted from 1966 to 1988, was a guerrilla war, which the nationalist South-West Africa People's Organization and others, fought against the apartheid government in South...
in 1990. This unpopularity of the paper within government led to a boycott of the newspaper on 5 December 2000 which was only overturned on 30 August 2011, the 26th anniversary of The Namibian. In the more than ten years in between, government offices were not allowed to advertise in the paper, and it was forbidden to buy copies of The Namibian with government funds.
Characteristics
A noteworthy feature of the Namibian are the SMS pages called "What you're saying!". These pages dedicated to "short messages to the editor" allow citizens from all over Namibia to comment on and raise topics, since mobile phones are widespread and cheaper and easier than mail or internet. According to former Editor Gwen Lister, the Namibian was the first paper to offer such an open forum for discussion via text message, since similar programmes at other media (e.g. in South Africa) only allowed to comment on chosen articles.The newspaper has offices in Windhoek, Swakopmund, Keetmanshop and Oshakati. Current editor of the paper is Tangeni Amupadhi. Prior to that, up until March 2011, the paper was headed by its founder Gwen Lister. Its circulation in 2010 was 40,000.
External links
- The Namibian Official web site