Exile years

The first years in exile Mweshihange furthered his education, studying towards a teacher's training certificate at Kivukoni Training College in Dar es Salaam in 1961 and 1962, and political science and ideology in Ghana in 1963 and 1964. Together with Nujoma he managed SWAPO's administration and resistance strategy, attempting to intensify the struggle for independence. From this attempt emerged the start of armed guerrilla action against the South African occupiers, and in 1966 the Namibian War of Independence started with a South African assault at Omugulugwombashe in northern Namibia.^[2]

At that time, Mweshihange was a commander in the People's Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN), the armed wing of SWAPO. Within the party structure he rose to the position of Secretary of Internal Affairs in 1970 and subsequently went to the Soviet Union to receive military training.^[1] In 1986 he became SWAPO's Secretary of Defense, responsible for PLAN's strategy to conduct the War of Independence. He was responsible for supervising PLAN operations during the decisive Battle of Cuito Cuanavale.^[2]

After Namibian independence

Mweshihange was a member of the SWAPO Central Committee and Politburo since the early days of the Ovamboland People's Congress, of which he was a co-founder.^[1]

At the time of independence in 1990, Mweshihange was elected as one of the members of the Constituent Assembly of Namibia with SWAPO, and appointed Minister of Defence. In 1996, he became Namibia's first ambassador to the People's Republic of China, a position he held until his death.^[3]

He died on 20 March 1998 while on a home visit to Windhoek.^[2] Peter Mweshihange was given a state funeral at Windhoek's Old Location Cemetery, and later re-buried at the Namibian National Heroes' Acre. Theo-Ben Gurirab remembered him as a culinary master and "connoisseur of good things in life".^[1]