16 Facts About Brendan Simbwaye

Brendan Kongongolo Simbwaye was a Namibian anti-apartheid activist who was president of the Caprivi African National Union.

In 1964, after a merger between CANU and SWAPO, Brendan Simbwaye was appointed vice-president of SWAPO, solidifying his position in the broader nationalist movement for the Namibian war of independence.

Brendan Simbwaye was born in 1934 at Ndangamwa, a village near Malindi in the eastern part of Caprivi.

Brendan Simbwaye was educated at the Holy Family Mission at Katima Mulilo where he completed Standard 6 Upper in 1955.

Brendan Simbwaye furthered his education at Lukulu Teacher Training College in Zambia where he completed a two-year primary education course in 1957.

Brendan Simbwaye did Standard 8 by correspondence through Lyceum College, South Africa.

Brendan Simbwaye was employed as a teacher at the Holy Family Mission in 1957.

Brendan Simbwaye was a Catholic and deeply religious, he was married to a trained nurse.

In September 1962, Brendan Simbwaye co-founded the Caprivi African National Union alongside Mishake Muyongo, with the aim of ending South Africa's control over the Caprivi strip.

In 1963, Brendan Simbwaye resigned from his teaching position to dedicate himself fully to the activities of CANU.

Brendan Simbwaye aimed to build ties with the United National Independence Party.

Brendan Simbwaye returned to Caprivi at the end of March 1964 and was arrested in July, just as he was about to address CANU's first public meeting at a village near Katima Mulilo.

Brendan Simbwaye was charged with leaving the country illegally and for organizing a public meeting without permission from the authorities.

Brendan Simbwaye was sentenced to a three-month jail term at the Windhoek Central Prison.

In 1970, Brendan Simbwaye was charged with terrorist activities in a secret trial in Pretoria.

Brendan Simbwaye was later allowed to return to Caprivi, where he disappeared under unclear circumstances in 1972.