Reverend Markus Kooper (12 September 1918 – 9 December 2005) was a Namibian activist, educator and religious figure. From

Hoachanas Hoachanas (Khoekhoe: ) is a settlement of 3,000 inhabitants in the Hardap Region of southern central Namibia, located northeast of Kalkrand. It is situated at the junction of the main road C21 from Kalkrand, and C15 from Dordabis to Stampriet ...

in the

Hardap Region Hardap is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia, its capital is Mariental. Hardap contains the municipality of Mariental, the towns Rehoboth and Aranos, and the self-governed villages Gibeon, Gochas, Kalkrand, Stampriet and Maltahöhe. It is ...

, Kooper was one of the first Namibians who travelled to the United Nations to petition for his country's independence from

apartheid South Africa Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

. He is buried at the National Heroes Acre memorial cemetery outside of

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 in 202 ...

. Kooper studied with the

Rhenish Missionary Society The Rhenish Missionary Society (''Rhenish'' of the river Rhine) was one of the largest Protestant missionary societies in Germany. Formed from smaller missions founded as far back as 1799, the Society was amalgamated on 23 September 1828, and it ...

and received teacher training in

Okahandja Okahandja is a city of 24,100 inhabitants in Otjozondjupa Region, central Namibia, and the district capital of the Okahandja electoral constituency. It is known as the ''Garden Town of Namibia''. It is located 70 km north of Windhoek on the ...

from 1939 to 1942. He then taught at missionary schools in Stampriet,

Gochas Gochas is a village in the Hardap Region of Namibia. It is located southeast of Mariental and southwest of Stampriet on the way to the Mata Mata border post to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. The town lies on the banks of the Auob River abov ...

and Hoachanas until 1946 and became headmaster at Hoachanas in 1949. He also attended ministry training with the

African Methodist Episcopal Church The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a predominantly African American Methodist denomination. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian theology and has a connexional polity. The African Methodist Episcopal ...

and was ordained as

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

. Kooper became the spiritual leader of his community and was appointed to Hoachanas' Pastoral Church in 1955. In 1956, Kooper spoke before the United Nations on the issue of South West Africa along with Reverend Michael Scott,

Mburumba Kerina Mburumba Kerina (born William Eric Getzen; 6 June 1932 – 14 June 2021) was a Namibian politician and academic. He was a co-founder of SWAPO, NUDO, and FCN, and the founder of a host of smaller political parties. For independent Namibia, he was ...

Hans Beukes Hans Beukes is a Namibian writer and former activist. Beukes was one of the leaders of the Coloured Baster community and one of the earliest petitioners for South West African independence when he travelled to the United Nations in 1956. To vis ...

, Fanuel Kozonguizi,

Sam Nujoma Samuel Shafiishuna Daniel Nujoma, (; born 12 May 1929) is 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 the first ...

, Ismael Fortune, Jacob Kuhangua and

Hosea Kutako Chief Hosea Katjikururume Komombumbi Kutako (1870 – 18 July 1970), was an early Namibian nationalist leader and a founder member of Namibia's first nationalist party, the South West African National Union (SWANU). "During his life, he exp ...

. The

Boer Boers ( ; af, Boere ()) are the descendants of the Dutch-speaking Free Burghers of the eastern Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. From 1652 to 1795, the Dutch East India Company controlled this are ...

e population of Hoachanas resented the presence of the 400-odd Nama residents and repeatedly tried to have them evicted. In 1959 they obtained an eviction order that was confirmed by the High Court in

. On 29 January 1959, Kooper and his family was resettled by force to Itsawisis, a village north of Keetmanshoop, almost away from his home settlement. He was brought back by his community in November of that year. Markus Kooper went into exile in 1960 to petition the UN again, this time as representative of the South West Africa United National Independence Organisation (SWAUNIO). He returned only in 1976 and established a private school at Hoachanas but remained politically active. His community resisted all resettlement attempts throughout the days of apartheid. Kooper later joined SWAPO and became a member of its Elders' Council. In March 2000 he was awarded the Most Distinguished Order of Namibia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kooper, Markus 1918 births 2005 deaths People from Hardap Region Namibian educators South West African anti-apartheid activists Namibian Christians National heroes of Namibia