During South African rule in Namibia, the liberation movement Swapo was officially recognized as sole legitimate representative of the Namibian nation by the UN. After the country’s belated independence in 1990, the movement changed its status to become the dominant political party within a democratic state. Still, being Namibian is synonymous with “being Swapo” for many Swapo supporters.
Since the years in exile, Swapo is obsessed with unity and tends to see dissent as a threat to (national) unity. In recent years, however, different factions within Swapo are covertly, but fiercely fighting each other. Dissent spreads out from Windhoek into the regions and is slowly changing perceptions of what it means to be a nation. In an optimistic view, this could lead to a disentangling of Swapo adherence and national unity; in a pessimistic view, it could lead to the exclusion of opponents from the national project. The paper will look at these changes and use them as a case study on the interaction between nation building and internal political identities in a multi-party democracy.