The South West African Native Labour Association (SWANLA) was a labour contracting organisation which contracted primarily
Ovambo people
The Ovambo people (), also called Aawambo, Ambo, Aawambo (Ndonga, Nghandjera, Kwambi, Kwaluudhi, Kolonghadhi, Mbalantu), or Ovawambo (Kwanyama) the biggest of the Aawambo sub-tribes are a Bantu peoples, Bantu ethnic group native to Southern Afric ...
from
Ovamboland
Ovamboland, also referred to as Owamboland, was a Bantustan in South West Africa (present-day Namibia), intended by the apartheid government to be a self-governing homeland for the Ovambo people.
The term originally referred to the parts ...
in northern Namibia to work in the
diamond mines in Namibia's southern
ǁKaras Region
The ǁKaras Region (pronounced , with a lateral click) is the southernmost and least densely populated of the 14 regions of Namibia; its capital is Keetmanshoop. The name assigned to the region reflects the prominence of the Karas mountain ra ...
.
It was established in 1943 from the merger of two pre-existing organisations, the
Southern Labour Organisation (SLO) and
Northern Labour Organisation (NLO).
It was infamous for its use of
contract labour
Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any ...
and human rights abuses among those employed in the mines. It was established in 1943 during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
to accommodate a rising demand for labour.
[The Institutionalization of Contract Labour in Namibia](_blank)
Journal of Southern African Studies
The ''Journal of Southern African Studies'' is an international publication which covers research on the Southern African region, focussing on Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, a ...
, Vol. 25.1. March 1999 SWANLA was a driving force in the creation of opposition political movements, including future liberation movement and ruling party of Namibia
South West Africa People's Organization
The South West Africa People's Organisation (, SWAPO; af, Suidwes-Afrikaanse Volks Organisasie, SWAVO; german: Südwestafrikanische Volksorganisation, SWAVO), officially known as the SWAPO Party of Namibia, is a political party and former ind ...
(SWAPO).
SWANLA classified employees based on 'working abilities & health' and then were issued tags to carry, around either their neck or arms. Worker had to show these tags to be allowed outside of Ovamboland. As no Ovambo or Kavango peoples were allowed to leave Ovamboland unless they were on a labour contract.
The organisation was abolished in 1972 after the
1971-72 Namibian contract workers strike against the contract labour system.
See also
*
Witwatersrand Native Labour Association
The Witwatersrand Native Labour Association (WNLA), more popularly Wenela, was set up by the gold mines in South Africa as a recruiting agency for migrant workers.
Eventually, it comprised a large organisation with its own depots, buses and aeropl ...
*
Labour hire in Namibia
References
1943 establishments in South West Africa
ǁKaras Region
Ovambo
Mining in Namibia
Employment agencies
Organizations established in 1943
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