Namibia

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Happy Namibia National Day

March 22, 2023 by 4 Comments

March 21st marks the day in which Namibia became an independent nation in 1990. It was colonized by the Germans in the latter half of the 19th Century as German South West Africa. Post-World War One, it became a mandate of the League of Nations under the administration of South Africa. Even after the League of Nations gave way to the United Nations, South Africa remained in control notwithstanding UN resolutions until 1990.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued the following statement today on Namibia National Day:

On behalf of the Government and the people of the United States of America, I extend heartfelt congratulations to the Namibian people as you celebrate 33 years of independence on March 21.

The people of the United States and Namibia share a steadfast commitment to democratic principles, human rights, and good governance. Our strong partnership promoting the health of our citizens underpins our continuing cooperation to combat the ongoing challenges of the global pandemic. In the coming year, we intend to expand our bilateral ties in priority areas such as the climate crisis, green economic growth, as well as increased commerce and trade. As we envision building a stronger bilateral relationship, we are committed to partnering with Namibia to combat the greatest challenges of our time for the benefit of both our peoples.

We send our best wishes for a peace, prosperity, and a joyous Independence Day.

Independence was a result of the Tripartite Accord brokered by the Reagan Administration in 1988. It involved South Africa, Cuba, and Angola. South Africa would grant Namibia its independence and remove its troops from parts of Angola while the Cubans would leave Angola entirely. South Africa would also recognize UN Security Resolution 435 which called for a cease-fire and UN supervised elections in South West Africa (Namibia).

An interesting sidelight to all of this was told to me at the Dallas Safari Club Convention last year. Alex Oelofse of Jan Oelofse Hunting Safaris related to me how his family’s lodge situated about 200 km north of Windhoek was used in these negotiations. Representatives of the US, South Africa, Cuba, Angola, and the UN needed a place to meet out of the media limelight so they used their lodge in the Okonjati Game Reserve. The late Jan Oelofse served as the primary animal wrangler in John Wayne’s 1962 movie Hatari.

I do hope to get to Namibia sometime in the next few years. From everything I’ve seen and everything I’ve heard, it is a beautiful country with abundant game. Just as importantly, it is one of the safer countries in Africa.

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Trophy Hunting Helps African Animal Populations

June 2, 2021 by 1 Comment

The British publication The Economist just produced a very interesting video on trophy hunting in Namibia. It makes the point that hunters and their money pays for conservation, provides meat to local communities, and provides an economic incentive to stop poaching and overgrazing.

You may not agree with trophy hunting and that is your right. However, bans on trophy imports, public shaming of hunters, and calls for banning it outright will eventually lead to the extinction of many species. Putting an economic value on wild animals, regulated hunting, and hunter-funded anti-poaching efforts have been shown to work.

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South African R2 With Updated Furniture

June 5, 2019 by

Ian McCollum of Forgotten Weapons just released a video of the South African Defence Forces R2 rifle with its modified furniture. The R2 was originally a Portuguese made G-3 rifle purchased by the SADF for use by second-line troops and the South West Africa Territorial Force.

South West Africa is the former name for the modern country of Namibia. The country was a South African “protectorate” under a League of Nations mandate after World War One. This mandate was abolished in 1966 by the United Nations but the South Africans held on in whole or in part until 1990.

Getting back to the R2, there were problems with the handguards due to the climate of the region. Ian writes this about it.

The Portuguese hand guards and buttstocks were found to be unsatisfactory, however. In the heat and harsh ultraviolet radiation of South West Africa (now Namibia) in particular, the plastic would shrink and lose its fit, leading to the guns being called “rattlers” by the SADF troops. The fix this, the American firm of Choate Machine & Tool was contracted to make new hand guards based on the H&K export pattern – wider and longer and with fittings for a bipod. New stocks were also made, duplicating the shape of the R1/FAL stock.

Given the similarities of the G-3 and R2 with the currently produced PTR-91, it would be very interesting to see if you could find some of these Choate Machine handguards and stocks to use on a PTR-91. I like the looks of the Choate handguards and stocks better than the originals. While I don’t own a PTR-91, I do own a boatload of magazines for it because they were a dollar or less at the time. One of these days I’ll finally get around to obtaining a rifle to use with those magazines!

As always, Ian has produced an informative and interesting short video.