The Cabinet of the Namibian Government granted approval to proclaim Omugulugoombashe in the Omusati region and the mass grave in the Windhoek old Location Cemetery as National Monuments.

In a media release, the significance of the two sites was explained:

Omugulugoombashe is the place where the first shot was fired in 1966 by the People‘s Liberation Army, the military wing of Swapo. This sparked off the bitter struggle between Swapo and the South African Army. This struggle culminated in Namibia‘s Independence on 21 March 1990. „That incident inspired many Namibians, young and old, irrespective of their background, to leave Namibia to go into exile. Their ultimate goal was to fight for the total liberation of Namibia where everybody could enjoy equal rights and be free from oppression."

The mass grave at the Old Location Cemetery in Hochland Park, Wind-hoek, „became the final resting place for a number of Namibians, men and women, including the legendary Kakurukaze Mungunda, after the South African army killed them in 1959".

The media release continues: „That year, the colonial administration decide to forcefully remove black people from what was then considered their rightful area of permanent residence, known as Old Location, to a new area north west of Windhoek, known today as Katutura. Blacks were to give way for a new white suburb to be established. They resisted the move, which prompted the colonial administration to use force, which resulted into the loss of many lives. The blacks, who lost their lives during the skirmish, were buried in the mass graves at the Old Location Cemetery."