Omugulugwombashe (also: ''Ongulumbashe'', official: ''Omugulu gwOombashe'';

Otjiherero Herero (Otjiherero) is a Bantu language spoken by the Herero and Mbanderu peoples in Namibia and Botswana, as well as by small communities of people in southwestern Angola. There were speakers in these countries between 2015 and 2018. Distr ...

: ''giraffe leg'') is a

settlement Settlement may refer to: *Human settlement, a community where people live *Settlement (structural), downward movement of a structure's foundation *Settlement (finance), where securities are delivered against payment of money *Settlement (litigatio ...

in the Tsandi electoral constituency in the

Omusati Region Omusati (the Oshindonga word for Mopane, the dominant tree in the area) is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, its capital is Outapi. The towns of Okahao, Oshikuku and Ruacana as well as the self-governed village Tsandi are situated in ...

of northern

Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...

. The settlement features a clinic and a primary school. In 1966, the first battle of the

South African Border War The South African Border War, also known as the Namibian War of Independence, and sometimes denoted in South Africa as the Angolan Bush War, was a largely asymmetric conflict that occurred in Namibia (then South West Africa), Zambia, and Angol ...

was fought in Omugulugwombashe. The government of Namibia erected a monument on the 30th anniversary of the battle in 1996. Omugulugwombashe is located 22km west of

Tsandi Tsandi ( Oshiwambo: ''that which is at the center'') is a village in the Omusati Region of northern Namibia and the district capital of the Tsandi electoral constituency. It is a former mission station of the Finnish Missionary Society. Tsandi ...

, on the D3633 gravel road.

Battle of Omugulugwombashe

In 1966 the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

General Assembly revoked South Africa's mandate to govern

South West Africa South West Africa was a territory under Union of South Africa, South African administration from 1915 to 1990. Renamed ''Namibia'' by the United Nations in 1968, Independence of Namibia, it became independent under this name on 21 March 1990. ...

(now Namibia) and placed it under direct UN administration. South Africa refused to recognize this resolution. South West African People's Organization (SWAPO) at that time prepared for armed resistance and founded its armed wing, the South West African Liberation Army (SWALA) in 1962. Many of its erstwhile commanders were in exile but SWALA began to infiltrate the north of Namibia to establish training camps. Omugulugwombashe was one such training camp, established in June 1966 by SWALA commander

John Ya Otto Nankudhu John ya Otto Nankudhu (1933–2011, Pseudonym#Nom de guerre, nom de guerre: ''Koshiwanda'', the surname is sometimes also spelled Nankugu) was a Namibian guerrilla, army officer and politician. He was the commander of the forces of the People' ...

. The group under Nankudhu had just started to build defensive structures and planned to train about 90 insurgents there. The area in which the battle took place is forested, on the western fringes of the Cuvelai Basin. On 26 August 1966, eight helicopters landed troops of the

South African Defence Force The South African Defence Force (SADF) (Afrikaans: ''Suid-Afrikaanse Weermag'') comprised the armed forces of South Africa from 1957 until 1994. Shortly before the state reconstituted itself as a republic in 1961, the former Union Defence Fo ...

and

South African Police The South African Police (SAP) was the national police force and law enforcement agency in South Africa from 1913 to 1994; it was the ''de facto'' police force in the territory of South West Africa (Namibia) from 1939 to 1981. After South Af ...

to attack the

guerrilla Guerrilla warfare is a form of unconventional warfare in which small groups of irregular military, such as rebels, Partisan (military), partisans, paramilitary personnel or armed civilians, which may include Children in the military, recruite ...

fighters at Omugulugwombashe. At the time of attack there were only 17 insurgents in the camp. It was the first armed engagement of the

, also known as the Namibian War of Independence. Among those SWALA fighters captured and imprisoned were: *

Julius Shaambeni Shilongo Mnyika Julius Shaambeni Shilongo Mnyika (17 January 1938 – 29 July 2003) was a Namibian guerrilla with the South West African Liberation Army (SWALA), forerunner to the People's Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN). Life Mnyika was born in Epinga, Ohang ...

, served 17 years of a life sentence before being released in 1985 *John ya Otto Nankudhu, served 17 years of a life sentence on

Robben Island Robben Island () is an island in Table Bay, 6.9 kilometres (4.3 mi) west of the coast of Bloubergstrand, north of Cape Town, South Africa. It takes its name from the Dutch language, Dutch word for seals (''robben''), hence the Dutch/Afrika ...

before being released in 1985 *

Immanuel Shifidi Immanuel Hafeni Augustus Shifidi (16 July 1929 – 30 November 1986), born in Windhoek, was a Namibian activist. He was one of the fighters at Omugulugwombashe Gaus Shikomba Gaus Shikomba (27 January 1935 - 3 November 2007) was a South West Africa Liberation Army (Swala) intelligence officer who was imprisoned on Robben Island from 1966 to 1984. Military career and imprisonment Shikomba was born in 1935 at Onashiku s ...

, sentenced to life imprisonment on Robben Island in August 1969 and released on 11 May 1984. Other guerrillas escaped but were detained in later years for their participation in the setup of the camp, for instance Lameck 'Kagwaanduka' Ithete who was arrested only in 1969. He served three years jail time in

Pretoria Pretoria ( ; ) is the Capital of South Africa, administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to the country. Pretoria strad ...

for his involvement. After the battle, PLAN blamed spies in the region for betraying them.

Sam Nujoma Samuel Shafiishuna Daniel Nujoma ( ; 12May 19298February 2025) was a Namibian revolutionary, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served three terms as the first president of Namibia, from 1990 to 2005. Nujoma was a founding member and t ...

held a council in which he reportedly stated that "We made mistakes. We won't do that again".

Commemorations

In commemoration of this day, August 26 is a public holiday in Namibia. It is recognized by the

as ''Namibia Day'' but Namibians refer to it as ''

Heroes' Day Heroes' Day or National Heroes' Day may refer to a number of commemorations of national heroes in different countries and territories. It is often held on the birthday of a national hero or heroine, or the anniversary of their great deeds that ...

''. Omugulugwombashe today features one of Namibia's two state cemeteries, where national heroes are buried. It also contains a memorial

shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...

, inaugurated by Namibia's founding president

, and a statue of the six soldiers leading the camp when the attacks started on August 26, inaugurated by Namibia's second president

Hifikepunye Pohamba Hifikepunye Lucas Pohamba (born 18 August 1935) is a Namibian politician who served as the second president of Namibia from 21 March 2005 to 21 March 2015. He won the 2004 Namibian presidential election, 2004 presidential election overwhelming ...

: *

John Nankudhu John ya Otto Nankudhu (1933–2011, nom de guerre: ''Koshiwanda'', the surname is sometimes also spelled Nankugu) was a Namibian guerrilla, army officer and politician. He was the commander of the forces of the People's Liberation Army of Nami ...

, Commander * Simeon Linekela Kambo Shixungileni, Deputy Commander * Patrick Lunganda Iyambo * Victor Mensah * James Hamukwaya * Nelson Kavela

Omugulugwombashe Medal

Although the action, in itself, was of little military significance, it represents the first engagement in what would be a long, intense and ultimately successful conflict. As such, it retains a totemic value that continues to endure and is commemorated in the prestigious decoration for veterans of the Liberation War, the Omugulugwombashe Medal.

Omugulugwombashe Star

A further commemoration of the battle is the name given to the country's premier rail-service. Namibia's first luxury passenger train, from

Windhoek Windhoek (; ; ) is the capital and largest city of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around above sea level, almost exactly at the country's geographical centre. The population of Windhoek, which ...

Ondangwa Ondangwa (earlier spelling ''Ondangua'') is a town in the Oshana Region of northern Namibia, bordering the Oshikoto Region. It had a population of 30,364 people in 2023. Ondangwa was first established as a mission station of the Finnish Missi ...

, was named the ''Omugulugwombashe Star'' on its inauguration, on July 15, 2006. This train, manufactured in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, was however grounded after a few rounds of service, because the locomotives packed up shortly after inception and were found unsuitable for Namibia's railway network. Afterwards, the weekly train service to Ondangwa was stopped.

References

External links