Namibian President Hage Geingob (R) confers the Order of the Most Ancient Welwitschia Mirabilis to Angolan President Joao Lourenco (L) at the commemoration of Cassinga Day in Namibia's capital Windhoek on May 4, 2018. Cassinga Day, which falls on May 4, is a national public holiday in Namibia marking the Cassinga Massacre which took place 40 years ago when the South African Defence Force attacked a base of then Nambian pro-independence movement SWAPO (South West African People's Organization) near the village of Cassinga in southern Angola. (XINHUA/NAMPA)

WINDHOEK, May 4 (Xinhua) -- Two historical monuments that pay homage to fallen heroes and heroines massacred by the South African apartheid defence force in 1978 will be built in Angola, Namibian President Hage Geingob said on Thursday.

"The construction of historical monuments at Cassinga and Xetequela, to honor and preserve the memory of the heroes and heroines massacred by the South African Apartheid Defence Force in May 1978 will proceed," Geingob said during a banquet welcoming visiting Angolan President Joao Lourenco on the eve of the Cassinga Day commemorations.

"Namibia fully appreciates the act of solidarity extended by the people of Angola with the Namibian people by approving construction of two Memorial Sites. Your financial commitment towards the project further demonstrates the level of cohesion with the Namibian nation," the Namibian president said.

Cassinga Day, which falls on May 4, is a national public holiday in Namibia marking the Cassinga Massacre which took place 40 years ago when the South African Defence Force attacked a base of then Nambian pro-independence movement SWAPO (South West African People's Organization) near the village of Cassinga in southern Angola.

On May 4, 1978, the South African Defence Force launched an air strike on the base near the village of Cassinga in Angola, followed by a deployment of paratroopers, killing hundreds of men, women and children there, who were sympathizers or the family of SWAPO members.

SWAPO has been the ruling party of Namibia since the country gained independence in 1990.

Lourenco arrived in Namibia on Thursday for a three-day visit. It was his first official trip to Namibia following his inauguration in September 2017. He will attend, as the guest of honor, the Cassinga Day commemorations Friday in Namibia's capital Windhoek.