Knowra Namibian independence Namibian independence Namibian independence was the end of South African rule and the establishment of the Republic of Namibia on 21 March 1990, following a United Nations-supervised transition.
German South West Africa : The German colony established in present-day Namibia in 1884 and governed until South African forces occupied it during World War I. German colonial rule created the territorial framework later administered by South Africa.
Tripartite Accord : The December 1988 agreement among Angola, Cuba, and South Africa linking Cuban troop withdrawal from Angola to implementation of the Namibia settlement. It cleared a major regional obstacle to carrying out Resolution 435.
South West Africa People's Organization : A Namibian liberation movement founded in 1960 that led the independence struggle and became the governing party after the 1989 election. SWAPO negotiated, campaigned, and took office as the transition concluded.
Namibia : A country in southwestern Africa that became independent from South Africa on 21 March 1990. Independence established Namibia as a sovereign state.
South West Africa : The name used for Namibia under South African administration, including its period as a League of Nations mandate and later contested territory. This was the territory whose status became the central dispute before independence.
United Nations Transition Assistance Group : The UN peacekeeping mission deployed in 1989 to supervise the ceasefire, elections, and transition to Namibian independence. UNTAG monitored the transition on the ground.
Hage Geingob : A Namibian politician who chaired the Constituent Assembly that drafted the constitution adopted before independence. As assembly chair, he helped guide the constitutional settlement.
Namibian Constitution : The 1990 constitution establishing Namibia as a multiparty republic with protected fundamental rights and a presidential system. It translated the transition’s political settlement into lasting state institutions.
South African occupation of South West Africa : South Africa’s military and administrative control of South West Africa, beginning during World War I and continuing until Namibian independence. The occupation was the rule that the independence process ended.
Namibian general election, 1989 : The November 1989 election for a constituent assembly, held under UN supervision before independence. The vote selected representatives to draft the country’s constitution.
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