Genocide Remembrance Day in Namibia Date in the current year: May 28, 2025

The German Empire claimed the territory of present-day Namibia as a colony in 1884, calling it Deutsch-Südwestafrika (German South West Africa). Colonial authorities and European settlers envisioned German South West Africa as a predominantly white colony in which settlers would own most of the land while natives would live in reservations.

The colonists were encouraged to confiscate land and cattle from the native Nama and Herero (Ovaherero) peoples and force them into slavery. Naturally, the indigenous people resisted European occupation and often rebelled against the colonizers. In January 1904, the Herero launched a surprise attack, killing between 123 and 150 German settlers, as well as several Boers and women.

Troops from Germany soon arrived to restore order in the rebellious colony, and fighting ensued. On August 11, 1904, the Herero lost the decisive battle of Waterberg. Between 3,000 and 5,000 Herero fighters died in the battle, but the Germans were unable to encircle and eliminate the retreating survivors.

In October 1904, General von Trotha, charged with suppressing the Herero rebellion, ordered a genocide against the Herero people. Around the same time, the Nama rebelled against the Germans and suffered a similar fate. Herero and Nama men, rebels and civilians alike, were hunted down and killed by German troops, while women and children were sent to concentration camps.

The colonial authorities established five concentration camps in German South West Africa: Shark Island, Windhoek, Swakopmund, Karibib and Okahandja. Prisoners in the camps were used for forced labor; many died of malnutrition, starvation, exhaustion, severe injury, and disease. Prisoners were also used in medical experiments. Some historians argue that the Herero genocide set a precedent that inspired Hitler in his campaign against “non-Aryans”.

The Herero and Nama genocide lasted from 1904 to 1908, during which time 10,000 Nama and between 24,000 and 100,000 Hereros were killed. Even the closing of the concentration camps did not end the suffering of the surviving Hereros; they were forced to work as laborers for German settlers and were prohibited from owning land or cattle.

The Government of Namibia officially designated May 28 as Genocide Remembrance Day in 2024; the first formal commemoration was held in 2025. The date was chosen to commemorate the day in 1908 when all German concentration camps in German South West Africa were ordered to close. However, the choice has been criticized by some Nama and Herero, who argue that the closure of the camps did not end discrimination.

The main purpose of Genocide Remembrance Day in Namibia is to honor and remember the lives lost during the genocide, to express solidarity with the descendants of the victims, and to unite the nation to ensure that genocide never occurs again in Namibia or elsewhere.