Heroes' Acre (Namibia)
The Heroes' Acre is an official war memorial of the government of Namibia. Built less than 10-kilometre (6.2 mi) outside the capital of Windhoek, Heroes' Acre opened on 26 August 2002 and operates for the purpose of "foster(ing) a spirit of patriotism and nationalism, and to pass on the legacy to the future generations of Namibia".[1]
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[edit] Location and description
The Heroes' Acre monument is situated south of Windhoek on the B1 national road to Rehoboth. It is built as a symmetric polygon with a marble obelisk and a bronze statue of the Unknown Soldier at its centre. The site contains parade grounds and a grandstand for 5000 people. The burial site consists of 174 tombs, not all of which are currently[update] occupied.[2]
[edit] Construction controversy
Mansudae Overseas Projects, a company from the North Korea, was given a N$60 million contract from Namibia to build the 732-acre (2.96 km2) monument. The contract was awarded without any competitive tendering process, and eventually the construction cost doubled.[2] The intransparent contracting of foreign manual labour has been criticised by corruption watchdog insight Namibia.[3]
The memorial has been described as "monstrous" and its erection was speculated to "reveal a lack of African self-confidence". The statue of the Unknown Soldier resembles the physical features of Sam Nujoma,[2] Namibia's founding president and ultimately the initiator of its erection.[1]
In May 2005, a report in The Namibian noted that Heroes Acre was "already showing signs of decay". In particular, a bronze statue of a soldier had suffered damage, as had the plinth on which it stood. Some of the gold-coloured letters forming an inscription on the plinth were broken or missing, and the letters were "made of a cement-like substance, which had been painted gold and then glued to the plinth" Since this article appeared it has now been restored to its former glory.[4]
[edit] Notable people buried at Heroes Acre
- Dimo Hamaambo
- Richard Kapelwa Kabajani (former cabinet minister and ambassador to Cuba)
- John Pandeni
- Mose Penaani Tjitendero (first speaker of National Assembly)
- Peter Tsheehama, People's Liberation Army of Namibia commander and Chief of Namibian Intelligence
[edit] Honored heroes
Many notable Namibians from the colonial era are also honored at Heroes Acre. Among these are Hosea Kutako, Jacob Marenga, Samuel Maherero and Markus Kooper, a war veteran who left his wife and family and went to the UN headquarters in New York from Hoachanas to fight for the independence of his country.
[edit] See also
[edit] Gallery
[edit] References
- ^ a b Windhoek City Council: What to see, National Monuments in Windhoek
- ^ a b c "Heroes' Acre Monument Namibia". Namibia-travel.net. http://www.namibia-travel.net/southnamibia/heroesacre.htm. Retrieved 8 December 2010.
- ^ "The hidden world of public contracting" (pdf). insight Namibia. March 2008. http://www.hsf.org.na/download/TrackerMarch08.pdf.
- ^ Menges, Werner (2005-05-06). "Heroes' monument losing battle". The Namibian. http://www.namibian.com.na/index.php?id=28&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=17897&no_cache=1. Retrieved 2008-09-07.
Coordinates: 22°39′50″S 17°04′42″E / 22.6638°S 17.0783°E
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