ABSTRACT
This chapter elucidates the logic behind the themes of postage stamps issued during Namibia’s transition to independence. The evidence suggests intent to capture the moment, to influence public perceptions and to re-brand the national iconography as has been the practice in other new states. The territory was in political limbo from 1920 (a League of Nations Mandate for South Africa to administer South West Africa), until independence in 1990. It was also the locus of a tragic liberation struggle during the 1970s-1980s, with communist Cuba and apartheid South Africa serving as surrogates in the Cold War. Politics notwithstanding, the two most common philatelic themes both before and after independence were tourism and other economic potentialities of Namibia’s animal wildlife and a diverse natural environment. Prominently featured were the mammals, birds, insects and flowers endemic to Namibia’s vast flat plains and arid desert landscapes, especially those declared as national parks or nature reserves. Post-1990, these themes were depicted with greater international consciousness of the World Wildlife Fund’s promotion of sustainable and responsible management and conservation of indigenous fauna and flora. Another theme was history. The focus on colonial Portuguese and German history in the pre-independence stamps changed after independence to urban growth, fossil archaeology and the achievements of missionaries from Finland. Other pre-independence themes were technology, agriculture, mining and culture depicted with the intent to profile the socioeconomic progress of the territory under South African administration. Post-independence emphases included fishing, Olympic sports, liberation politics and social development under the new regime.
