The good, the bad and the ugly of the German colonial legacy

During the recent visit to Tanzania by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, from October 30 to November 1, 2023, the issue of apologising for wrongs that were committed to the local populations during German rule arose. The President duly apologised.

There are well documented, and some, not so well-documented cases of how the Germans dealt harshly with local leaders resisting German rule.

According to a number of historians, having delineated their territory in 1890, the Germans set out to extend their rule.

They met with a lot of resistance from the local populations, who opposed German rule, which was, right from the start, regimentally, characterised by a policy known as shrecklichkeit, or “frightfulness”, and which aimed at making the colony as productive as possible, tolerating no resistance.

Between 1888 and 1906, there were no fewer than eleven insurrections against German rule in German East Africa, three of which lasted more than four years.

The most famous was the Maji Maji rebellion (1905-1907), which was vanquished with serious loss of life and property. Most of the Ngoni chiefs, including the famous Songea Mbano, after whom the Municipality of Songea is named, were hanged.

As late as 1909, punitive expeditions were still being mounted against rebellious peoples in Burundi, Kilimatinde, Mpwapwa and Moshi. Local leaders who were hanged include Mangi Meli of Moshi together with 19 other Chagga, Meru and Arusha leaders. Karagwe Chief Ntare was also hanged by the Germans on a tree in the Municipality of Bukoba. There are definitely many others who suffered the same fate.

While, after the change in German approach, tranquility was achieved in most parts of the territory, Mahenge and Iringa were still military districts by 1914.

When Tanzanian and German delegations meet to deliberate on how to address the German legacy, the bad and ugly is possibly well-conceptualised. The return of remains of the freedom fighters has been mentioned.

There are other areas that need to be addressed as well. For example, the Germans were good at surveying land, and it is believed they have record of every inch of land in this country; where land was divided into flurs, which were entered into a land registry (Grundbuch). These records should be given back to the Government of Tanzania.

These include cadastral and topographical maps. People believe that the Germans surveyed all minerals and natural resources, on the ground and under the ground in German East Africa, and that these records are sitting somewhere in the German Archives.

 Information on soils, flora and fauna, land movements, water bodies, and animal and fish species, were collected and recorded. It is only proper that this information should be handed to the Government of Tanzania. The German policy on urban land uses was based on racial segregation.

Nevertheless, a number of administrative and residential buildings were put up, many times depicting a mixture of European and Arab architecture.

 These buildings were moreover designed to moderate the air temperature, in a situation where mechanical air-conditioning was absent.

The main administrative building in any major town was the Boma, usually strategically located to exude authority to the rest of the town. The one at Mahenge is most interesting since it also included a prison, which is still in use today.

All railway stations along the German-built central railway line depict German features. We see this in Dar es Salaam, and it is heartening to learn that the old Dar es Salaam Railway Station building is not to be demolished in the light of the new SGR station

. Other impressive railway station buildings are to be found at Dodoma, Tabora, Kigoma and elsewhere. There are also other impressive German buildings like the Ocean Road Hospital in Dar es Salaam.

These buildings are in a poor condition and need maintenance and restoration. They need to be preserved. Many, for example in Bagamoyo, are collapsing.

The Tanzania-German negotiations on the legacy of German Colonialism could include an agreement for the German government to undertake to maintain these buildings for many years to come, to depict the other side of German rule, and to encourage tourism. German features than need to be preserved include the Botanical Gardens in Dar es Salaam.

A few years ago, there was a delegation of journalists from Germany that recorded German buildings in Tanzania, Namibia and Cameroon. Did they produce a report? A documentary? What was the ultimate fate of that report?

Germans were good at recording things and that is something we could learn from them. Many of their records were hand-written, in good calligraphy. Sadly, many of these archives are crumbling, suffering, from among others, the ravages of time. This is a legacy that needs to be preserved.

It is also known that, besides research on soils, animals and plants, Germans researched a lot on tropical diseases, including malaria. This is an area where Tanzania-German cooperation should be encouraged to continue, building on the German foundation.

There is a lot to moan about German rule in German East Africa. Nevertheless there is what could be seen as positive aspect of that era, which could be built upon to create better relationships between Tanzanian and German peoples.