PAUL G. CONWAY
CURRICULUM VITA/Resume
ADDRESSES
Home
Address:
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General background: Born in
Military Service:
Overseas travel: Western and Central Europe, Central America, Southern
Africa,
ACADEMIC BACKGROUND
1972 Ph.D. in Political Science awarded by Purdue University, Dissertation:
An Analysis of
1968 Master of Arts Degree in Political Science at
1967 Course requirements for MA in U.S. History fulfilled, Montclair State
College, NJ
1963 Bachelor of Arts Degree at Michigan State University, East Lansing,
Michigan; undergraduate major in Social Science, minors in History and Physical
Education.
PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYMENT
1993-present Professor of Political Science
Department Chairman (1993-96)
State University of New York, College at Oneonta, New York
1987&78 Adjunct Professor of Political Science, Hartwick College,
Oneonta, New York
1970-92 Assistant and Associate Professor of Political Science,
State University of New York, College at Oneonta, New York
ONGOING RESEARCH: Conducting interviews and collecting stories of rescuers in Bosnia (and most recently) in Rwanda to encourage reconciliation in those societies. See http://rwandablog.wordpress.com/
PUBLICATIONS:
Articles
-“Righteous Hutus: Can Stories of Courageous
Rescuers Contribute to
http://www.academicjournals.org/IJSA/contents/2011cont/July.htm
- "Truth and Reconciliation in Post-Apartheid Namibia: The Road Not
Taken," Online Journal of Peace and Conflict Resolution (OJPCR)"
Issue 5.1 (Summer, 2003) http://www.trinstitute.org/ojpcr/5_1conway.htm
or,
http://www.trinstitute.org/ojpcr/5_1conway.pdf
- "Political Culture, Hegemony, and Inequality Before the Law: Law
Enforcement in Pakistan" with Fida Mohammad, in Policing: An
International Journal of Police Strategies and Management December,
2005 Volume: 28 Issue: 4 Page: 631 - 641.
- "A Myth for All Seasons: The Domino Theory and
- "Drama in the Classroom," with Steven J. Gilbert (SUNY Oneonta,
Psychology, in Teaching of Psychology 14:3, (Oct.
1987) pp. 171-172.
Manuscript: “Memories of
Genocide in
Additional publications
include:
-- "Justice and Law Enforcement in Afghanistan: How Much is Likely to
Change?" with Fida Mohammad, (research note) in Policing: An
International Journal of Police Strategies and Management Vol 26,
No 1, (Spring 2003) pp 162-167
-- (Oneonta) Daily Star Op-Ed essay on terrorism in southern Thailand:
http://www.thedailystar.com/opinion/columns/2005/04/23/conw0423.html
-- "Memories, Memorials, and the Legacy of
German Genocide in Namibia" in Oneonta Faculty Convivium, Vol XII
(Fall, 1998 issue)
-- Introduction to edited
collection of 1996-97 McGraw Hill PRIMUS text publications,
"Introduction to Government", pp i-xv (ISBN 0-390-14080-5)
BOOK
REVIEWS: (Over 90 reviews in several
publications, including the Annals of
the American Academy of Social and Political Science, the American Political Science Review and especially, CHOICE:
Current Reviews for Academic Libraries and Colleges) Reviews since 1999 include the following:
“Routledge Handbook of Ethnic Conflict”
in the November, 2011 issue of CHOICE.
Edward S. Herman and David Peterson, The Politics of
Genocide.
in the November 2010 issue of CHOICE
Thierry Cruvellier, Court of Remorse: Inside the International Criminal
Tribunal for
Larry May, “Genocide: A Normative Account”
(CambridgeUniversity Press, 2010) in CHOICE, 2010.
DVD review for Bullfrog Educational Films
John Pilger, “The War You Don’t See,”
Spring, 2010
Phil Clark and Zachary D. Kaufman After Genocide:
Transitional Justice, Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Reconciliation in
Cooper, Allan D. The geography of genocide. University Press
of America, 2009. 255p appeared in the June 2009 issue of CHOICE.
Alex Thompson, U.S. Foreign Policy Towards Apartheid South Africa New
York: Palgrave MacMillan, 2008 in the September, 2009 issue of CHOICE
Victor Peskin International Justice in Rwanda and the Balkans: Virtual
Trials and the Struggle for State Cooperation New York: Cambridge
University Press, in the January 2009 issue of CHOICE
Daniela Kroslak The French Betrayal of Rwanda (Bloomington and
Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 2008) in the October, 2008, CHOICE
Michael D. Goldhaber, A People’s
History of the European Court of Human Rights
(
Jared Cohen, One Hundred Days of
Silence:
Michael Wessells, Child Soldiers: From Violence to Protection (
Adam Jones, Genocide: A Comprehensive Introduction, (
Daniel Chirot and Clark McCauley Why Not Kill Them All? The logic and
prevention of mass political murder (
Kevin Boyle Mary Robinson: A Voice for Human Rights (
Mark Ensalaco and Linda C. Majka, “Children’s Human Rights:
Progress and Challenges for Children Worldwide”, (Rowman &
Littlefield, 2005 in CHOICE, March, 2006.
Mark R. Amstutz, "The Healing of Nations: The Promise and Limits of
Political Forgiveness". (
Tracey Jean Boisseau, "White Queen: May French-Sheldon and the Imperial
Origins of American Feminist Identity," (
Benjamin Valentino, "Final Solutions: mass killing and genocide in the
twentieth century". (
Mwesiga Baregu and Christopher Landsberg, eds. "From Cape to
Alexander Moseley and Richard Norman, eds. "Human Rights and Military
Intervention" (Ashgate Publishers, 2002) in CHOICE, Spring, 2003.
Peter D. Feaver and Richard H. Kohn, eds. "Soldiers and Civilians: The
Civil Military Gap and American National Security" (MIT Press, 2001) in
CHOICE, April, 2002
Richard Falk, "Human Rights Horizons," (New York: Routledge,
2000) CHOICE
Ann Kent, "China, the United Nations, and Human Rights: The Limits of
Compliance," CHOICE
Review of internet web-site called "GlobalLink" for the August, 1998
CHOICE (pp. 164-5). This publication was a special supplement to Volume 35
which provides a "comprehensive, convenient, single reference source of CHOICE
internet reviews," Republished in August 1999 special supplement to Volume
36.
Review of David S. Sorenson, "Shutting Down the Cold War: The Politics of
Military Base Closure. (St Martin’s,
1998) CHOICE April, 1999 Vol 36, no. 8.
Review of Robert W. Gregg, "International Relations on Film,"
(UK/Lynne Rienner, 1998)
in Asian Thought and Society: An
International Review (Fall, 1999)
Review of Yves Beigbeder, "Judging War Criminals: The Politics of
International Justice”
(Macmillan,UK/St Martin’s,
1999) CHOICE, Fall, 1999
Ben Kiernan, “The Pol Pot Regime: Race, Power and Genocide Under the
Khmer Rouge,
1975-1979” (New Haven: Yale Univ Press, 1995) in Asian Thought and Society: An International Review (Sept-Dec
1996) XXI, 63; pp.19
TEACHING: (Course evaluations on file in Departmental Office)
Primary responsibilities: POLS 171 and 281: Comparative and International
Politics and related 3 credit courses
POLS 284: U. S. Foreign Policy
POLS 382:International Law and Organizations
Introductory Political Science courses: Intro to Government (POLS 120) and
US Government POLS 121
Secondary teaching responsibilities: (* indicates courses that I
initiated and developed)
* POLS 279 Religion and Politics: Comparative and International Perspectives
* POLS 286:International Arms Races (mini course, 1978-1999)
* POLS 289:Apartheid in Southern Africa and the International
Response(mini-course)1979-1994;
* POLS 290:Genocide and the International Response (mini-course)
* POLS 291: Israel and the Politics of the Mid East Region (mini-course)
* POLS 288:Human Rights Politics and International Law (mini course)
* POLS 287: America's Longest War - The Politics of U.S. Intervention in
Southeast Asia
(1978-1998 -- was among the first Vietnam War courses in USA)
* POLS 285: The Military in American Politics (mini course)
- The two previous courses were restructured as
* POLS 292: "The American Military at Peace and War,"(1999-present)
Additional courses:
* POLS/PSYCH/SOC 278: Prisons and Prisoners (mini course - Visitations to NY
state facilities)
* POLS/PSYCH 294: Special Topic: Obedience and Conformity in Public Affairs
(with Dr. Steve Gilbert, Psychology Department, 1984,
1987, and 1991 Honor's Course).
POLS 270: The Holocaust: Nazi
INTerdisciplinary 100: First Year Student Honors Seminar 1994
and 1998
PAPERS and Professional Presentations:
Paper presented to annual conference of New England Political Science Association, Newport,Rhode Island:
April 23, 2010; “Righteous Hutus: Stories of Courageous Rescuers and How They Contribute to Rwanda’s Reconciliation Process”
Paper presented to conference on Remembering War: Genocide and Other Human Rights Violations Concordia University, Montreal, Canada: November 7, 2009
“Stories of Courageous Rescuers During Rwanda’s 1994 Genocide: Can They Help?”
Paper presented at the 2007 IAGS (International Association of Genocide Scholars) conference in
(with Nejra Nuna Cengic) June 20, 2007.
Panel presentation to Center
for the Study of the Presidency Student Symposium in
Paper presented to the (April) 1999 Pennsylvania Political Science
Convention (Reading) and New York State Political Science Convention
(Hofstra) entitled "Truth and Reconciliation: The Road Not Taken in
Post-Apartheid Namibia."
*
Paper presented to the 1994 NYS Political Science Association Convention,
Albany, New York, entitled "Quest
for a Genocide Memorial in Southern Africa: The German-Herero Legacy in
Namibia"
*
Paper presented at the NYS Political Science Association Convention held
at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, April 1, 1989: "Teaching a Neglected Topic: Courage in Public Affairs,"
co-authored with Steven J. Gilbert
Invited
participant in a week-long Scholar-Diplomat Seminar in the U.S. State
Department during February 1974. Included were numerous interviews with
bureaucrats on
Participant Two-day
scholar-diplomat seminar reunion by invitation, June 1975, U.S. Department of
State, Washington, D.C.
Invited
participant
U.S. Department of State, Washington, D.C., Conference on U.S. Foreign
Policies, April 6 & 7, 1983.
Participant, SUNY@Buffalo
Conference, "
* Discussant:
"
* Panel
Moderator and involvement in organizational activities for the SUNY
Conversations in the Disciplines on "Space
for War, Space for Peace," SUCO April 1986.
* Paper
presented at the 1986 NYS Political Science Association Convention,
* Panel
presentation at the 1969 American Political Science Association Convention,
"Systems Analysis in the
Introductory American Government Course: The Audio-Tutorial Technique."
* Paper
presented to the Conference on "Morality Among Nations" at
Plattsburgh State College, Plattsburgh, New York, February 22-24, 1972: "The Moral Dimension in Foreign Policy
Making: The Case of Chemical and Biological Weapons Decisions."
Invited Participant
in the Inter-University Seminar on Armed Forces and Society held at
GRANTS, HONORS, AND
AWARDS
UUP Faculty Development Grant Award, 2006, 2007, 2008
College Research Foundation Grant, 2006-7
Provost Faculty Development Research Grant Award 2006-7
National
Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Summer Seminar on "Comparative
Imperialism" directed by Robin Winks, History Department, Yale
University, New Haven, Connecticut, June-August 1984.
Graduate
Research Initiative Grants, SUNY Oneonta, Spring 1993, 1999; 2006
United
University Professions (UUP) Travel-Research Grant, Spring 1993, 1995, 1999
Walter B. Ford
Research Grant, Spring, 1993
David Ross
Fellowship in Political Science, Purdue University, Summer 1969.
National Defense
Education Act (NDEA) Experienced Teacher Fellowship Program
(Full-year graduate scholarship in Political Science) at
Coe Foundation
Award: Summer Institute in American Studies
at
Fifteen
National Science Foundation (NSF) Chautauqua Short Courses (most recently with (Douglas Magrath, USFla) on Islam, 2004, Jackie
Smith, Globalization and George Lopez, International Economic
Sanctions at SUNY Stony Brook, NYC campus, Spring, 2003; and Paul
Bernstein, "Is the American Democratic System Truly Responsive?"
Summer, 2000 at
COLLEGE
and UNIVERSITY SERVICE (since 1990)
(Service
activities prior to 1990 listed on previous Vita on file in
Political Science Department Office)
Chair, Political
Science Department, 1993-1996.
Departmental
representative to the College Senate 1984-1992; 1996-98;
2001-2006
College Standing Disciplinary Board, 2003-present
Grievance Chair, Oneonta United University Professionals Union (UUP);
2003-2007 Mediator 2007 to present
SUNY Senate
Standing Committee on Student Life, 1998-2001.
Pre-Law
Advisement Committee (Coordinator, 1986 to 1993).
Advisor to the Political
Science Club, 1987, 1989 to 2004.
Advisor to
campus chapter of Amnesty International 1989 to 1999.
Advisor to
Pre-Law Society - 1987 to 1994.
Student Progress
Committee - 1988 to 1989. Curriculum Committee 1990-April, 1991.
Student Affairs
Committee 1990 to 1992 (Chair 199Standing Disciplinary Board (1992;
2003-present)
Academic
Orientation Committee, 1989-1992.(Co-chair with Marilyn Helterline
Gulf Crisis
Information Center, Advisory Committee, Spring, 1991
Vice President's
Search Committee for Acting Dean of Science and Social Sciences, April, 1991
First Year
Experience Committee (Dr. Margaret Maguire, Chair) 1991-1997
First Year
Seminar Honors Section, Fall, 1994
College Life
(experimental course for first year students),instructor
First Year
Scholars Seminar (experimental honors program) 1995-1996
Chair of Search
Committee for Director of International Education 1995
Presentation to Oneonta
Faculty Convivium. December 2, 1995
Dean’s Advisory Council (Personnel recommendations to the Dean of Science
and Social Science) 1997-1999
COMMUNITY
SERVICE
(since roughly 1990)
Chapter
President, Amnesty International (Otsego-Delaware Counties), 1982,
1987-88;
Case Coordinator
1985 to 1990.
Mayor's
Commission on
Dispute Mediator
with
(active mediator - June, 1989 to 1998) Agency susequently known as Mediation
Services Inc.
Executive Board,
League of Woman Voters 1992-1993)
Otsego County Early
Probation Release Commission (1991- to present);
Mr. Thomas
Heitz,
Board of Directors, West
Kortright Centre (1998 to 2004) a tri- county cultural arts association.
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Memories of Genocide and Memorials in
A CASE STUDY OF THE
GERMAN-HERERO LEGACY
IN
Paul
G. Conway
Political Science Department
Although the crime of genocide has occurred
throughout history, the concept and the sense that it must be carefully
documented came about in this century. In recent years the rationale for
memorials to genocide victims has become widely appreciated. Whether or not
such memorials should be established is a matter of public policy within
nation-states. This essay is a case study of what was presumably the first
instance of genocide in the 20th century, in the German colony of South West
Africa (now Namibia), and the aftermath
of that event. My search for a national memorial to the Herero victims of
genocide is detailed. The paper concludes with an attempt to explain the
absence of any prominent monument, museum or national memorial to commemorate
the catastrophe.
“The fact of genocide is as old as humanity."
-- Jean-Paul Sartre
"The Hereros ceased to exist as a people."
-- Report of German Military
Historians, circa 1907
"Forgetting the extermination is part of the extermination
itself."
-- Jean Baudrillard
Introduction
Although genocide - the most
horrendous of crimes - has occurred throughout the course of history, the use
of the word, the legal concept, and the sense that genocide should be carefully
documented and analyzed, developed in the twentieth century.[i] The widespread
sensibility that such events should be memorialized for social, psychological,
and historical reasons is also relatively recent. During this century
Armenians, Jews, Cambodians, Rwandans and other groups have been victimized by
genocidal policies. In response to the most extreme example of genocide, the
Holocaust, the awful events have been exhaustively documented and memorialized
in national monuments and museums in several countries. Other genocidal events have been memorialized
as well.[ii]
Genocide poses a grave
threat to international standards of civilized behavior. After a century marked
by its horrors,[iii] one would hope
that all such events would be memorialized. But they are not. Invariably,
genocide memorials must be created within the boundaries of a state system. The
memorials are invested with a national soul and memory; the “collected memory” (as Young
called it) is somewhat selective and subjective.[iv] Monuments and
other memorials represent efforts to sustain a particular interpretation of an
event in light of the nation's history.[v] Decisions
regarding what, when, where, and what kind of memorials should be established
are matters of public policy shaped by political realities as well as collected
memory. Presumably useful lessons can be
learned about cultures and politics through investigations of how and why some
societies choose to memorialize the victims of genocide and others do not.
What follows is a case study
of what many scholars identify as the first incident of genocide in the
twentieth century, and its aftermath.[vi] According to
some researchers, the antecedents to the Holocaust itself were rooted in that
catastrophic event.[vii] Unfortunately,
the event is not widely known, except to academics and students of history.[viii] What
happened? Has the event been memorialized? If there is a significant national
memorial to the genocide victims, what is it like? If none exists, why is that
the case? This essay represents an
effort to answer these questions, beginning with a summary of historical
research on the genocidal event.
Background -- A Story of
Genocide:
During the 19th century, the
Hereros were the largest indigenous group in the center of the land that would
eventually become
Politically, the Hereros had
no central authority as they acknowledged several chiefs (called headmen) in
distinct regions where they resided.[xi]
Nonetheless the death of the most prominent Herero leader, Kamaherero, in 1890, and the subsequent
execution of his nephew and potential successor six years later, undermined the
Herero’s ability to control their own destiny. After German colonial administrators
maneuvered to put Samuel Maherero in an unprecedented political position of
Supreme Chief, supposedly responsible for all of the Herero nation or
“tribe”, their persecution and misfortune accelerated.[xii] Herero leaders
became increasingly concerned about their losses of cattle and lands as well as
the degradation of their people. In 1903
they learned of a new German ordinance that would diminish their control of
land and livestock. The Herero chiefs then conferred.
1884
1892 Last (fourth)
war between Herero and Namas ends with treaty.
1896 Eastern
(Mbanderu) Herero rebellion crushed.
Chiefs executed by Germans.
************************************************************************************
1904 (January)
Herero "Rising" begins with Chief Samuel Maherero's call for unified
African rebellion against German rule.
1904 (August)
Reinforced German military confronts main body of Herero nation in battle at
Waterberg Plateau. Herero forces
slaughtered; survivors herded into desert.
1904 (October)
German forces attack Herero survivors.
Nama rebellion begins with October 3 declaration of war by Chief Hendrik
Witbooi.
1905 German pursuit of survivors ends. Hereros lose property and rights; many
thousands die from harshly forced labor and squalid conditions
************************************************************************************
1907 Nama
guerrilla forces defeated by Germans.
Herero survivors and Namas dispersed in colonial work force and labor
camps.
1915 German military
defeated by British/South African forces.
1920
1948 Afrikaner
Nationalist Party wins control of South African government; Apartheid policies
enforced in
1958 "Old
Location" massacre of Windhoek/Katutura residents occurs as
1966 United
Nations General Assembly resolution declares
1978 United
Nations Security Council Resolution 435 provides outline for negotiated end to
war in
1988 F.W.
De Klerk takes power in
1990 Elections
conducted under supervision of UN observer forces. SWAPO wins; Sam Nujoma becomes first
President of Namibia.
The shaky relationship
between the settlers and Chief Samuel collapsed early in 1904. Although he had
been something of an opportunist and collaborator prior to then, Samuel
announced that he would oppose the Germans with military force. He called for
all Hereros, along with the Namas and other tribes, to cooperate in a united
front against the Germans. The other Herero chiefs did respond to his plea but
the Namas did not. The unified Hereros began their revolt with a commitment to
honor Samuel’s pledge not to attack German women, children, or missionaries.[xiii]
After a series of Herero
victories in small skirmishes, German settlers feared for their survival. The
German military (Schutztruppe) was rapidly reinforced; eventually, almost
20,000 troops were provided to protect a total of less than five thousand
settlers.[xiv] At that time
the total number of Hereros was thought to be at least 80,000.[xv]
At the end of the autumn,
Chief Samuel ordered the Hereros to withdraw and consolidate their forces,
along with their families and livestock.[xvi]
Customarily, Herero wives went into battle with their warriors to inspire them
and tend to the wounded. Nonetheless, the result of this unprecedented
consolidation reduced their mobility and increased their vulnerability. It proved to be disastrous.
In
The official policy was to
discourage atrocities but many were reported. According to one witness, a
military guide, all who were captured, “men, women, and children, wounded
and unwounded. . . were killed without mercy.”[xviii]
The Hereros fled in panic. Von Trotha’s subsequent proclamation to Herero
leaders on October 2, demanded that,
"The Herero nation must leave the country. . . every Herero tribesman,
armed or unarmed, with or without cattle, will be shot. No women and children
will be allowed in the territory; they will be driven back to their people or
fired on.”[xix] Two days later
he said, "The nation as such must be annihilated. . ." He told his soldiers that he had, "no
doubt that as a result of this order no more male prisoners will be
taken.”[xx]
For ten months the
Schutztruppe pursued groups of Hereros, denying their access to waterholes. The
pursuit was somewhat haphazard but effective. Herero men were executed; women
and children were chased towards to the desert. Without food or water,
countless numbers died in the sandveld.[xxi]
Eventually protests from Rhenish missionaries caused an outcry in
A tiny fragment of the
Herero population, including Chief Samuel, survived an arduous trek across the
Kalahari Desert to what was then British Bechuanaland (now
Between 1904 and 1908,
thousands of incarcerated Hereros died of starvation and disease. The prisoner
of war facilities and labor camps were overcrowded to the point that they could
not be supported adequately. The number of prisoners in the adjoining
facilities actually surpassed the colonial populations of
The estimated number of
Hereros who survived the calamitous events is based upon the official census
taken in 1911. The count then was 15,130 Herero in the colony, much less than a
quarter of their estimated population prior to the war.[xxvi]
The Namas, who belatedly
began a rebellion against the Germans in October of 1904, also suffered great
losses. Their numbers were reduced from approximately 15 to 20 thousand to less
than 10,000.[xxvii] Their revolt
was not connected to the Herero uprising and only indirectly connected to von
Trotha's campaign to completely destroy the much larger Herero nation. Fighting
in the south of the colony, the Namas persevered with guerrilla tactics for
three years. Although they suffered
greatly, the documentary evidence does not suggest that they were victims of a
deliberate war of extermination as were the Herero.
In the Official Military
History written in 1907, German historians asserted that “the Hereros
ceased to exist as a tribe.” Social scientists who studied the Herero survivors and their
descendants would concur. Karla Poewe, an American anthropologist, later
concluded that the traditional Herero culture was virtually destroyed. She
found none who remembered or were willing to recount the disaster.[xxviii] Among the surviving Hereros
there were [xxix]many
conversions to Christianity in the missionary stations, initially the only
places where they could legally congregate and gain some external assistance.
For many years their general condition remained desperate but their sense of
collective identity was gradually resuscitated. The return of Chief
Samuel’s body from
Sequel: The emergence of the
state of Namibia
After German colonists lost
control of
There were numerous protests
from Namibians to the United Nations pleading for action against the apartheid
regime. Among the groups that resisted, the Herero Chiefs were most vociferous
up until the mid 1950’s.[xxxi] One Herero
leader in particular, Chief Hosea Kutako,a survivor of the battle of Hamakari,
gained widespread respect for his dignified opposition and articulate petitions
to the UN. But the peaceful protests had
little impact.[xxxii]
The
During the war for Namibian
independence, Ovambos were in the forefront of SWAPO's struggle but they also
predominated in the notorious Koevoet ("Crowbar"), counter insurgency
forces organized by the South African military, as well. Torture and other human
rights abuses were widespread. Many Hereros were involved and victimized by
both sides.[xxxiv]
The climax to the struggle
occurred in the late 1980s. The outcome was influenced by the intervention of
Cuban forces in neighboring
Today,
One might expect that many
or most of the prominent statues and memorials in
Several of the largest and
most striking monuments in the country are located in
Alte Feste was a Herero
prisoner of war camp around the year
1906. The fortress structure now houses a museum. The emphasis in that museum
is on cultural artifacts and SWAPO's political struggle for independence
Significant changes have occurred in
recent years, however.[xxxix] There are
now photographic displays of Herero resistance to German rule early in the
century, located in the room adjoining the entrance. The other national museum,
adjacent to the Archives and the Library, presents cultural, natural, and
environmental phenomena, but very little related to
To the west and south of
Inland to the north there
are several scenic towns with
The most salient Herero memorials
in the entire country can be found in the town of
Elsewhere in Okahandja there
are more modest Mbanderu graves of "Green-Flag" Herero chiefs. Most
notably, there is the place where the proud Chief Kihamema was buried.
Kihamema's resistance to German persecution and exploitation ended with his
death in 1890. Six years later the execution of his nephew and intended
successor, Nicodemas Kavikunua, led to the elevation of Samuel as paramount
chief.[xlii] Yet another important
Herero memorial, "Blood Hill," is located in this historically
important yet now sleepy town. A concentration of large rocks commemorates the
victims of an assault in 1850 by Nama warriors which resulted in many
casualties, including hundreds of Herero women whose arms and legs were
methodically amputated by the invaders.
If there is any other
historically significant place where one might expect to find a prominent
memorial to the Hereros, it would be in the Waterberg/Hamakari area. The places
of battle and a German graveyard are located today in what is now part of a
major nature preserve, the
In the Hamakari beyond the
plateau there is a small, remote Schutztruppe gravesite. It is located on one
of several, large ranch estates in the area owned by German-Namibians. On that
same estate is another remarkable site, but hardly noticeable without effort.
There is a collection of large rocks,
piled together in the midst of heavy brush. It is said to a mass grave. Allegedly, it was marked by Herero warriors
who returned there several years after their defeat.[xlv]
Again and again, the search
for significant Herero memorials led to gravesites. There was clearly a bias or
distortion of history in the existence and placement of such monuments. The
traditional culture of the Hereros included an oral tradition which passed on
information about the location of burial sites and great events, but there was
no tradition of sculpted monuments prior to their conversions to Christianity.
The Herero chiefs who were prominently memorialized were those who converted to
Christianity rather than those who resisted pressures to convert. The German
missionaries had their greatest success proselytizing after the Herero nation
was virtually destroyed.[xlvi]
My search throughout much of
Most of
It is reasonable to ask
whether or not a museum or monument (meaning statuary or facilities previously
associated with Western cultures) would be appropriate from a Herero point of
view. There is no obvious answer because the Hereros today constitute a very
diverse population in
Why is there no prominent
genocide memorial in
An outsider would be
presumptuous to suggest how thoughtful people in a foreign land should interpret and represent their own
history. There is no intent to do so
here. Perhaps one can come to an
understanding that many in
One point that becomes
evident in discussions with many Namibians is that the issue of genocide, per se, is not resolved within the
country itself. The issue is potentially quite controversial there, despite
what seems to be a consensus among scholars elsewhere. Although Namibians
scholars acknowledge that the Hereros suffered catastrophic losses under German
rule, some skeptics among them have raised interesting historiographic
questions as to whether the most dreadful events were really a result of
genocidal policies.
The most intrepid (and
controversial) skeptic in
It is certainly true that
there was no careful census nor was there even a systematic (in the modern
sense) survey of the Herero population prior to 1904. What cannot be refuted
however, is
The most prominent Herero
academic in
Arguably, the passage of many decades
since the destruction of the Herero nation did diminish the sense of the
historical significance of that event in
Presumably many Hereros know
little about the early colonial period of the country's history although it is
now taught in most of their public schools.[lx]
In recent years there appears to be growing interest in the subject.[lxi] The idea of a
national Herero memorial, not necessarily a genocide memorial, is for the first
time being seriously discussed at the National Monuments Council offices, even
though it is not yet a subject of national debate. At present however the
Council’s priority is to promote the establishment of a more prominent
memorial to Hosea Kutako, the famous Herero leader who died in 1970, at the age
of 104.[lxii]
Ethnopolitical realities and
historical memory:
Some of the most immediate
symbolic needs of Hereros are provided by the annual parades and ceremonies
which involve present-day chiefs and elites in towns such as Omaruru and
Okahandja. The symbolic security of the German-Namibian minority is enhanced by
the rich store of monuments and museums in places such as Swakopmund,
Grootfontein, and
The lack of any prominent
national memorial, museum, or public collection of documents centering on the
Herero disaster that occurred in the early l900's, may well be a consequence of
the collective weakness of the Hereros throughout most of
Given the potential for
ethnic conflict rooted in
As elders in the Royal
Maherero House told me in a collective interview, some of the most sacred
Herero sites in the Hamakari, where so many of their ancestors perished, are on
large cattle and wildlife ranches owned by ethnic Germans. In their view, those
German-Namibians are reluctant to acknowledge the historical guilt of their own
ancestors; they are also very reluctant to part with their land.[lxvi]
Another concern beyond partisan considerations is
Conclusions:
Beyond
It can be argued that
genocide is a greater threat to human civilization than conventional warfare.
The question is complicated because genocide often occurs in conjunction with
interstate military conflict. Melson
calculates that since World War II, more lives have been lost in domestic
massacres and genocidal policies within states than in all of the wars between
states.[lxix]
Baudrillard’s suggestion that, "forgetting the extermination
is part of the extermination itself,”[lxx]
is a profound insight. Given the enormous historical significance of genocidal
events, educators and opinion leaders should encourage the development of
(national) memorials wherever documentary evidence strongly suggests that the
crime has occurred. Memories are never static. Since memory itself is in
constant flux, prominent memorials can take on meanings and functions that were
not intended by their creators.[lxxi] It is what
people invest in a memorial, over time, that makes it significant. Without
clearly identified memorial sites as well as documentation, the awareness of
genocidal events and their historical significance may be lost to future
generations. National memorials to
genocide victims can reinforce a global perspective on unique historical
conditions and unusual ethnocentric patterns of behavior associated with the
worst crimes imaginable. A network of genocide memorials might provide settings
for international scholarship as well as civic education.
Presumably many citizens in
states where prominent memorials to genocide victims are established can
benefit from their existence. Unlike war memorials (to combatants), genocide
memorials can emphasize the inherent rights and dignity of civilians persecuted
by authority. If some encourage
reflection about disadvantaged groups and peoples who historically struggled
and suffered for their collective identity, they can educate in a humane
fashion; conceivably some can transcend national and parochial perspectives.
Surely there are no guarantees, given the reality that genocide memorials are
inevitably constructed within states, shaped by group interests and people
whose, "motives of memory are never pure.”[lxxii]
The absence of a prominent memorial
to genocide victims in
The first case of genocide
in the twentieth century may eventually be memorialized in a prominent national
setting or facility. The obstacles to such a development are formidable:
inertia; partisan politics; economic concerns and -- most ominous -- fears of
ethnic conflict. At the dawn of a new century, questions about
***
This
study was facilitated by funds provided by the following sources: The Walter B.
Ford Foundation and the Graduate Research Institution at the State University
College of New York at Oneonta, and a grant from the New York State United
University Professions Faculty Development Award (NYS/UUP PDQWL). I also
gratefully acknowledge the assistance of A. Paul Vogts (
ENDNOTES
[i] Since the Polish jurist and scholar Raphael Lempkin first coined the term (Axis Rule in Occupied Europe Washington DC: Carnegie Endowment, 1944) there has been much scholarly debate on the meaning of genocide. There is widespread criticism (quite valid, I believe) of the United Nations' definition adopted in 1949. Frank Chalk and Kurt Jonassohn, History and Sociology of Genocide (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1990) discuss several problems with extant definitions of genocide.(pp. 23-32) I embrace their definition here: "Genocide is a form of one-sided killing in which a state or other authority intends to destroy a group, as that group and membership in it are defined by the perpetrator." See also Jonassohn, "Prevention without Prediction," Holocaust and Genocide Studies, 7:1 (Spring, 1993) pp.1-13.
[ii] William Shawcross, The
Quality of Mercy:
[iii] A useful
macroanalysis of twentieth century genocides is R.J. Rummel's, Genocide in
Comparative and Historical Perspective, a paper prepared for the Conference
on "The `Other' as Threat --Demonization and Antisemitism," June
12-15, 1995 at the
[iv] James E. Young, The
Texture of Memory: Holocaust Memorials and Meaning (New Haven: Yale
University Press, 1993). This brilliant analysis demonstrates the complexity of
the memorialization process in relation to historical understanding. For a
brief essay that deals with a recent memorialization of the Holocaust, see Leon
Wieseltier, "After Memory: Reflections on the
[v] Young develops these points in his consideration of genocide memorials, memory and the sense of historical meaning within political cultures. (See pp. 5, 8-14) Another cogent analysis of how memory is constantly refashioned by psychological and social forces is John Kotre's White Gloves: How We Create Ourselves Through Memory (New York: The Free Press, 1995).
[vi] Three of the first
scholars to clearly document the event as genocidal were: Horst Drechsler, Let
Us Die Fighting: The Struggle of the Herero and the Nama against German Imperialism (1884-1915) Translated
by Bernd Zollner.
[vii] Bley, South-West
Africa, p. xvii, and Jon Swan, “The Final Solution in
[viii] This situation may be changing with occasional mass media accounts of the event. One example is a German article summarizing the event as genocidal is by Von Volker Ullrich, "Deutsches Blut zu rachen!" Die Zeit, 20 zeittaufte, no. 3, 21 January 1994.
[ix] Jon Bridgman, The Revolt of the Hereros (Berkeley: University of California, 1981), also Bley, op cit., p. 124-127.
[x] Drechsler, op cit., p. 349; Bley, op cit., p 95; Bridgman, op cit., p. 62.
[xi] Siba N’Zatioula Grovogui, Sovereigns, Quasi Sovereigns, and Africans, (Minneapolis University of Minnesota, 1996) pp. 100-102. See also, Michael Scott Oral Records Project, The Mbanderu, (Windhoek: Star Binders, circa 1990) and Warriors, Leaders, Sages, and Outcasts in the Namibian Past: Narratives Collected From Herero Sources (Windhoek: John Meinert Pty, 1992).
[xii] See Grovogui, op.cit. For a detailed account of how colonial authorities maneuvered to exploit differences among the Hereros and how Samuel came to be the “paramount leader” recognized by the Germans, see Gerhard Pool, Samuel Maherero, (Windhoek: Gamsberg Macmillan, 1991) pp. 81-139.
[xiii] Drechsler, op cit., pp. 166-167; Pool, op cit., p. 211.
[xiv] Bridgman, op cit. p. 112.
[xv] Most scholars accept the estimate by Drechsler and others that there were roughly 80,000 Hereros prior to 1904 but the data is somewhat shaky. The highest estimate of the Herero population was 100,000 but a few researchers such as Brigett Lau speculate that the population was much lower.
[xvi] By May (autumn in the territory) half or more of the entire Herero population with a huge concentration of cattle, numbering perhaps 50-60 thousand, was believed to be located in the Waterberg area. See Bridgman, op cit., p. 109.
[xvii] At the end of 1905, according to Drechsler (op cit., p. 238ff.) and Bley (op cit., p. 150) “there were only some 16,000 Herero survivors in the colony.”
[xviii] Jon Swan’s essay summary of the event includes excerpts of testimony given under oath by several witnesses to the worst atrocities. The quote above came from Jan Cloete of Omaruru. Military History Quarterly, p. 50. See also Bley, op cit., p 126.
[xix] Von Trotha made it
clear that the only hope for the women and children after the Waterberg battle
was for them to cross the desert to
[xx] Von Trotha asserted
that if annihilation were not possible from a military standpoint, "then
they must be driven from the land." See Drechsler, Sudwestafrika,
p. 189. See also Bley, op.cit.,
pp. 163-164. This notorious “extermination order” was issued a
month after the Hamakari battle and was rescinded after much controversy in
[xxi] Bley, pp. 150-151; Bridgman, pp. 126-131.
[xxii] According to Bley,
“about a thousand” escaped into
[xxiii] Bridgman, p.131.
[xxiv] Bridgett Lau,
"Uncertain Certainties: The
Herero-German War of 1904," Mibagus (also Agus) no 2 (April,
1989),
[xxv] Colonists typically harbored hostile attitudes toward the Hereros and other indigenous peoples, according to contemporary observers. They viewed them as inferiors but feared for their own physical security. Herero chiefs viewed high ranking colonial officials as equals but were supercilious in their dealings with settlers. By 1905 the colonists were said to be far more belligerent and hostile toward "natives" than soldiers (were). See Bridgman, p. 155. Bley's analysis of colonial attitudes is quite thorough, especially pp. 73-98, 249-279.
[xxvi] Dreschler, p. 242, and Bridgman, pp. 26, 165.
[xxvii] Bley, South West Africa Under German Rule, p. 150; also Dreschler, op cit. pp. 148, 242-244.
[xxviii] Karla Poewe, The Namibian Herero: A History of Their Psychosocial Disintegration (Lewiston, N.Y. and Queenston, Ontario: Edwin Mellen Press, 1985) pp. 69-78.
[xxix] Bridgman, p. 131. See also Bley, who wrote that “the Herero . . . abandoned their traditional customs and standards. Deprived of their tribal links, often without contact with their families, they became cowed and disoriented.” (op cit., p 151)
[xxx] Pool, op cit., p. 306; Peter H. Katjavivi, (A History of Resistance in Namibia, Paris: UNESCO Press, 1988) p. 26.
[xxxi] According to Ruth First, South West Africa (Baltimore: 1963, Penguin Books), of all the African groups, the Herero led the effort to petition the United Nations to intervene against the apartheid regime. p. 196.
[xxxii] Katjavivi, p. 128.
[xxxiii] Hidpo L. Hamutenya and Gottfried H. Geingob, "African Nationalism in Namibia," in Christian P. Potholm and Richard Dale (eds.) Southern Africa in Perspective, Free Press: New York, 1972), pp. 85-94.
[xxxiv] Africa Watch (Richard Dicker, author) Accountability in Namibia: Human Rights and the Transition to Democracy, August, 1992, Human Rights Watch Report. (New York: HRW, 1992), pp. 1, 18.
[xxxv] Joshua Bernard
Forrest, "A Promising Start: The
Inauguration and Consolidation of Democracy in
[xxxvi] See, for example,
"
[xxxvii] This part of the study
is based upon field research including interviews conducted in
[xxxviii] Interview with Hinrich Schnieder, Otjiwarongo; 7 June 97.
[xxxix] I first saw that photographic display of Herero-German conflict at the Alte feste museum in early June 1997. (It was not there in May of 1993.)
[xl] The colorful, “Red Flag” ceremonies occur during one of the last weekends in August.
[xli] After he died in 1923, authorities allowed the return of his body to the land where he had long hoped to return. Details about the politics of his reburial are found in G. Pool, Samuel Maherer (op cit., pp. 293-308).
[xlii] Grovogui, op cit. pp. 100-102.
[xliii] The plaque simply states: "Dem Andenken, Der in Schlacht, am Gefallenen Hererokriger."
[xliv] After spending a day alone in the graveyard, I inquired about the whereabouts of Herero burial grounds that were thought to be in the immediate area. Camp employees and others who lived in the area were unable to indicate where they were located. My impression is that the area provides very powerful places for memories and reflection for Hereros and others with knowledge of what happened there, but not many go for that purpose.
[xlv] Testimony gathered from Herero workers on the farm of Wilhelm Dickman solicited in the company of Hiruke Kaapama and Henrich Meier on June 7, 1997.
[xlvi] The church was one place where disoriented Herero (and Nama) could legitimately congregate without interference. There they were gradually able to reconstitute communities and develop a broader sense of African nationalism. (Bley, op cit., pp. 256-257.)
[xlvii] According to the brochure published by the National Monuments Commission there are 118 officially designated national monuments.
[xlviii] Interviews, National Monuments Council (further information available upon request).
[xlix] A recent study
indicated that the sale of cattle were again an important source of income to
Hereros. (New Era,
[l] One such division recently became manifest with the proposal for a new national arrangement called a "Traditional Council" of ethnic and community leaders: Some Mbanderu leaders expressed a desire to terminate their association as Hereros. In addition to the two royal houses or “authorities” (as they are sometimes referred to now) already mentioned above, there are Zieraua (“white flag”), Kambazembi, Otjikaoko, and Vita associations. Much of the diversity and political conflict within the Herero population (long encouraged and exploited by political authorities) relates to these groupings. For historical background, see Pool, op cit., pp. 51, 88, 131.
[li] Bridgman, op cit., p. 2.
[lii] Interview with Brigett Lau, May 11, 1993.
[liii] Lau,
“Uncertain Certainties: The German Herero War of 1904,” Migabus,
[liv] Ibid. See “Uncertain Certainties,” pp. 3-5.
[lv] For one critical response to Lau and others, see Kurt Jonassohn, “Before the Holocaust Deniers,” Social Science and Modern Society/Trans-action. 33:2 Jan/Feb 1996, pp. 31-38.
[lvi] Pool, op cit. pp. 251-252, Poewe, and Lau have disputed the meaning of the word vernichten translated as “annihilation,” in the context of the policy to imprison large numbers of Herero civilians after the Waterberg battle. Pool, for example, stated that 8,889 prisoners taken up to 11 January 1905 was a “trustworthy statistic.” (op cit., p. 280)
[lvii] Even the Chief of
Staff in
[lviii] With reference to
the Chalk/Jonassohn definition of genocide adopted (see ff. 1, above) it seems
reasonable to conclude that genocidal policies were implemented for a period of
at least one year in
[lix] op cit, ff.
30 above. Katjavivi studied at
[lx] Poewe was "unable to find any living Herero who could remember those times or remember having been told about them." in the early 1980’s (op cit., p. 69). See also ff. 51 above. Although the genocidal event was not generally taught in Herero schools during the pre-independence period it is now, in the middle school years.
[lxi] One of several published indications of the growing interest in the subject is found in I. Gebby Uamburn, "Hosea Kutako Foundation," (an article in Herero) New Era, 15-21 June, 1995, p. 17.
[lxii] Conversation with Mr. G. Hoveka, National Monuments Council, June 3, 1997. Also, correspondence with Professor Peter Katjavivi, dated 7 July, 1997.
[lxiii] A strong possibility for a memorial that would serve to strengthen a sense of national purpose and relations with neighboring Angola might be Kassinga, across the border with that country where South African forces massacred hundreds (mostly civilians) in 1978. Every year on the anniversary of that event there is recollection and reportage of it in Namibian media.
[lxiv] Young, op.cit, p. 3.
[lxv] Interviews, National
Monuments Commission,
[lxvi] Interview with
Moses Vesevete, Justius U. Maherero, Elia
[lxvii] Data on commerce
with
[lxviii] Ervin Staub, The
Roots of Evil: The Origins of Genocide and Other Group Violence,
[lxix] Robert Melson, Revolution and Genocide: On the Origins of the Armenian Genocide and the Holocaust (Chicago: University of Chicago, 1993), p. 285.
[lxx] Young, p. 1.
[lxxi] See Gustav Niebuhr,
"More Than a Monument," New York Times, Nov. 11, 1994, p. 1,
regarding the changing meaning of
[lxxii] Young, op. cit. p. 2.
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1989 Essay (published in SUNY Oneonta's The State Times newspaper) by Paul Conway
The Proliferation of
Chemical and Biological Weapons: What Can the
Recent intelligence reports that up to a dozen states are
actively researching or developing bacteriological weapons (BW) are chilling.
The reports that
It may be too late to put the CBW genie back into the bottle. Grandiose disarmament proposals are not sufficient in relation to these weapons in particular. It is simply too difficult -- virtually impossible -- to negotiate and implement a verifiable ban on CBW agents. Arrangements for surveillance and compliance in many small places in dozens of states would have to be very intrusive. It is hard to imagine many American chemical-pharmaceutical companies accepting them. Much time and energy could be wasted pursuing such a lofty goal. In the long run such a disarmament agreement would be unenforceable and might encourage cynicism, as did the 1928 Kellog-Briand Pact, which banned warfare itself. Governments and terrorists will always have access to CBW agents if they choose. But they must know they will be punished if they use them.
Why single out
The response that would
be most dramatic, and satisfying to some, would be for a more powerful state to
bomb the facility. Just as the Reagan administration supposedly flirted with
the idea of bombing
What should be done now
is difficult, not only for the
Economic sanctions were
imposed by the League of Nations during
A halfhearted effort to
encourage French, Soviet, and other leaders to cooperate will surely be
ineffectual; a unilateral effort to impose sanctions (given the very limited
commerce we have with
PGC June, 1989