Gochas

Gochas is a village in the Hardap Region of Namibia. It is located 110 kilometres (68 mi) southeast of Mariental[1] and 64 kilometres (40 mi) southwest of Stampriet on the way to the Mata Mata border post to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park.[2] The town lies on the banks of the Auob River 1,150 metres (3,770 ft) above sea level. In 1960, the population was reported as including 205 whites, 108 mixed-race, and 224 blacks. The area is at the center of a set of Kalahari Desert dune farms on which cattle and sheep graze.[3]

Gochas
Village
Aerial view of Gochas (2017)
Gochas
Coordinates: 24°47′S 18°49′E
Country Namibia
Time zoneUTC+2 (South African Standard Time)
ClimateBWh

History

The village has been the main settlement of the ǃKharakhoen (Fransman Nama), a subtribe of the Nama people,[4] since 1889.[5]

Gochas was a flashpoint in the colonial Herero Wars in German South West Africa. It was used as a military post and camel station under Imperial German rule. In January 1905 the Germans defeated the Nama chief Simon Kooper here. The final battle of the war, the Battle of Seatsub, was fought in Bechuanaland in March 1908. Capt. Friedrich von Erckert was killed in action, and a memorial was built in Gochas.[6]

Politics
Athtletics in the desert.

Gochas is governed by a village council, established in 1958, that currently has five seats.[7]

The 2015 local authority election was won by the SWAPO party which gained three seats (326 votes). One seat each was won by the Congress of Democrats (CoD, 96 votes) and the Democratic Turnhalle Alliance (DTA, 36 votes).[8]

Climate

Gochas receives an average of 176 millimetres (6.9 in) of rainfall per year. During the 2010s drought a low of 31 mm (1.2 in) was recorded.[9]

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References
  1. Cloete, Luqman (24 November 2005). "Ministry takes up probe of problems at Gochas". The Namibian.
  2. "Gochas". Namibweb. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
  3. Potgieter, D.J. (ed.) 1972. Standard Encyclopaedia of Southern Africa. Cape Town: Nasionale Opvoedkundige Uitgewery (Nasou).
  4. Malan, Johan S (1998). Die Völker Namibias [The Tribes of Namibia] (in German). Windhoek, Göttingen: Klaus Hess. pp. 120–125.
  5. Dierks, Klaus. "Biographies of Namibian Personalities, K". Retrieved 9 July 2011.
  6. Haacke, Wulf D (1992). "The Kalahari Expedition, March 1908: The Forgotten Story of the Final Battle of the Nama War". Botswana Notes and Records. 24: 1–18. JSTOR 40979912.
  7. "Know Your Local Authority". Election Watch (3). Institute for Public Policy Research. 2015. p. 4.
  8. "Local elections results". Electoral Commission of Namibia. 28 November 2015. p. 2. Archived from the original on 10 December 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
  9. Menges, Werner; Oliveira, Yokany (23 May 2019). "Khomas faces worst drought in 90 years". The Namibian. p. 1.
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