By Koviao Matuzee
The board chairperson of the Students Union of Namibia (SUN), Benhard Kavau has called on young Namibians to move beyond simply commemorating Heroes’ Day and instead use the occasion to reflect on the sacrifices of the past while taking greater responsibility for the country’s future.
Kavau said Heroes’ Day should not be reduced to another public holiday or ceremonial event but should serve as a reminder to young people of the courage, principles and sacrifices that shaped Namibia’s liberation.
He urged the youth to draw lessons from the country’s liberation history and to remain committed to defending the values for which previous generations fought.
“Never sell out your country. Never surrender your principles. Never become comfortable with injustice,” Kavau said.
According to him, young Namibians must remember that the country’s freedom was achieved through difficult sacrifices and that those who fought for liberation did so despite the risks they faced.
He said figures such as the late Sam Nujoma, Hifikepunye Pohamba, Hage Geingob, Chief Sitentu Mpasi and Anna Kakurukaze Mungunda demonstrated the importance of using one’s youth, energy and courage to stand up for human rights, dignity, freedom and independence.
According to Kavau, remembering these figures should therefore be about more than knowing their names or attending annual commemorations.
He believes their legacy should challenge today’s youth to ask what they are doing with the freedoms and opportunities inherited from previous generations.
“Freedom was not delivered on a silver platter,” he said, stressing that Namibia’s independence came through sacrifice, resilience, imprisonment and, for many, the ultimate price of their lives.
He further said the freedoms enjoyed by young Namibians today, including freedom of expression, access to education and the ability to participate in shaping the country’s future, are connected to the struggles of those who came before them.
Kavau believes this creates a responsibility for young people to ensure that the sacrifices of Namibia’s heroes were not made in vain.
However, he said honoring the country’s heroes should not mean simply looking backwards.
Instead, young people must use the opportunities available to them to address the challenges that continue to affect Namibians, particularly in education, employment, housing, healthcare, food security and economic opportunities.
Kavau placed particular emphasis on students, saying education should be viewed as a tool for national transformation rather than simply a pathway to obtaining qualifications.
He also argued that free education must go beyond access and should provide young people with equitable, accessible and quality learning that equips them to contribute meaningfully to Namibia’s development.
According to him, the responsibility of students does not end in lecture halls or examination rooms.
He called on young Namibians to become active participants in economic development, policy making, civic engagement and national coversations.
“We cannot afford a generation that only complains from the sidelines. We must be present where decisions are made,” he said.
Kavau also challenged young people to take politics seriously, describing it as a basic necessity of society because political decisions and institutions directly influence many of the issues young Namibians face every day.
He said young people cannot afford to remain spectators of democracy when decisions being made by political institutions have a direct impact on their education, employment prospects, housing, healthcare and economic opportunities.
He however wants the youth to become architects of Namibia’s future by actively participating in democratic processes and using their voices to influence the direction of the country.
His message comes at a time when young Namibians continue to grapple with questions about their place in the country’s social, economic and political future.
According to Kavau, the answer lies partly in recognizing that the generation benefiting from Namibia’s freedom also has a role to play in strengthening and advancing it.
He said the country’s liberators had a vision that extended beyond their own generation.
Their struggle was not only about achieving political independence, but about creating better opportunities and improving the lives of future Namibians.
He pointed to the country’s development journey as part of that vision, from sandy roads to gravel roads, from gravel roads to tarred roads, and from limited opportunities towards a nation of possibilities.
Kavau also cautioned that the journey cannot stop there.
The youth, he said, must take ownership of the country they inherited and work towards building the Namibia envisioned by those who fought for its freedom.
“Our heroes fought to give us a voice. Our responsibility is to use that voice boldly, intelligently and fearlessly,” Kavau said.
As Namibia marks Heroes’ Day, his message to young people is not to remember the past, but to allow the past to shape their actions in the present.
According to Kavau, the greatest tribute young Namibians can offer the country’s heroes is not only remembrance, but responsibility, standing against injustice, protecting democratic values, pursuing education, participating in national affairs and refusing to remain silent when the country’s future is at stake.
His perspective is that Heroes’ Day should ultimately leave young people with a question that extends beyond the annual commemoration; What are we doing with the freedom that others sacrificed to give us?
