Colonial history of Southern Rhodesia
Encyclopedia
The territory of 'Southern Rhodesia' was originally referred to as 'South Zambezia' but the name 'Rhodesia' came into use in 1895. The designation 'Southern' was adopted in 1901 and dropped from normal usage in 1964 on the break-up of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
, and Rhodesia
became the name of the country until the creation of Zimbabwe Rhodesia
in 1979. Legally, from the British perspective, the name Southern Rhodesia continued to be used until April 18, 1980, when the name Republic of Zimbabwe was formally proclaimed. The colonial history of Southern Rhodesia lasted from the British government's establishment of the government of Southern Rhodesia
on October 1, 1923, to Prime Minister
Ian Smith
's unilateral declaration of independence
in 1965.
'Rhodesia' was named after Cecil Rhodes, the British
empire-builder who was one of the most important figures in British expansion into southern Africa
, and who obtained mineral rights in 1888 from the most powerful local traditional leaders through treaties such as the Rudd Concession
and the Moffat Treaty signed by King Lobengula
of the Ndebele. The British government agreed that Rhodes' company, the British South Africa Company
(BSAC), would be granted exclusive mineral rights stretching from the Limpopo to Lake Tanganyika
. Queen Victoria signed the charter in 1889. Rhodes used this document in 1890 to justify sending the Pioneer Column
, a group of white settlers protected by well-armed British South Africa Police
(BSAP) and guided by the big game hunter Frederick Selous
, through Matabeleland and into Shona territory to establish Fort Salisbury (now Harare
). In 1893-94, with the help of their new maxim gun
s the BSAP would go on to defeat the Ndebele in the First Matabele War
, a war which also resulted in the death of King Lobengula and the death of most of the members of the Shangani Patrol
. Shortly after the disastrous Jameson Raid
of the BSAP into the Transvaal Republic, the Ndebele were led by their spiritual leader Mlimo against the white colonials and thus began the Second Matabele War
(1896–97). After months of bloodshed, Mlimo was found and shot by the American scout Frederick Russell Burnham
and soon thereafter Rhodes walked unarmed into the Ndebele stronghold in Matobo Hills and persuaded the impi
to lay down their arms, effectively ending the revolt.
In 1899, a Legislative Council was created with a minority of elected seats, through which the BSAC had to pass government measures. The electorate was almost exclusively white settlers, and the proportion of elected seats increased steadily over time. Prior to about 1918, the opinion among the electorate supported continued BSAC rule but opinion changed because of the development of the country and increased settlement. In addition, a decision in the British courts that land not in private ownership belonged to the British crown rather than the BSAC gave great impetus to the campaign for self-government.
Rhodesia retained the Cape Colony system, which gave voting rights to blacks and whites who owned property with a minimum value of £150 or had an annual income of at least £100. Both means tests were accompanied by a simple language test in English. These voting qualifications that ensured de jure
equality (in theory at least) amongst the races were maintained until 1951, when the financial qualifications were raised. The Southern Rhodesia general election of April 29, 1924, was the first election to the Legislative Assembly of Southern Rhodesia following the grant of responsible government to the colony. It saw a comprehensive victory for the Rhodesia Party, which had been formed by the supporters of responsible government.
From September 1953 to 1963, Southern Rhodesia was part of the multiracial Central African Federation, also known as the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
. The federation was set up in an effort to pool resources and markets. The economy was prosperous at the time due to a post-World War II
boom. The African population opposed it because they feared that they would not be able to achieve self-government with the federal structure dominated by white Southern Rhodesians.
The federation fell apart in 1963 after much crisis and turmoil, and Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland became the independent states of Zambia
and Malawi
in 1964. Southern Rhodesia reverted to its status as a crown colony
of Britain but was now known as Rhodesia
. From 1957 to 1960, the Southern Rhodesia African National Congress
, a black led organization, sought to obtain political control for the black African majority.
The Southern Rhodesian government of Garfield Todd
attempted to introduce liberal reforms from 1953 to 1958 to increase the welfare of the black population by increasing educational access for the black majority as well as by providing better housing and healthcare. Todd, however, was forced from power when he attempted to expand the number of blacks eligible to vote from 2% to 16%. Plans were made to dispense with some of the apartheid regulations, providing for more racial equality.
Black discontent had been growing in the rural areas largely because of the disruptive impact of the 1951 Land Husbandry Act. It was designed to enforce private ownership of land and improve the rural economy in the African reserves, which experienced the pressure of a growing population within fixed areas. However, its provisions violated traditional practices. Rather than expand the size of the reserves, the act limited cattle grazing in specified areas and provided for the de-stocking of African herds; it allowed officials to dictate patterns of cultivation and crop growing and to fix dwelling sites on farm land; it prohibited cultivating or grazing without a permit and imposed compulsory labor on unemployed rural Africans. Implementation of the act meant the depletion of highly valued herds, reduction of the land under cultivation, and the forced uprooting of families and entire villages. Discontent with socioeconomic conditions was growing among urban Africans as well. A recession in 1957–1958 hit blacks hard; rising unemployment and inadequate township housing contributed to their sense of deprivation and provided ready-made issues for ANC organizers.
Disturbances in what was Northern Rhodesia in 1959 and the violence against whites in the Belgian Congo
and French Congo
in early 1959 created a climate of fear amongst the white population. As a consequence, a security crackdown in Rhodesia occurred, which was largely a preemptive strike against further nationalist organizing of blacks and against potential African unrest.
The emergency episode proved counterproductive in several respects. It ruined the prospects for genuine racial partnership, made heroes out of the detainees, and alienated moderate Africans from the Government. Indeed, black opposition at this point started to become violent. Repression of the black majority by the white minority had helped to engender the terrorism that would haunt the country for decades. To deflate the crisis atmosphere of the state of emergency and yet preserve its sweeping powers as insurance against the future, the regime sought to normalize the exceptional measures by incorporating them in statute law. Thus institutionalized, the official emergency came to an end.
and provided for the banning of additional organizations if their activities were deemed "likely" to disturb public order, "prejudice" the tranquility of the nation, endanger "constitutional government," or "promote feelings of ill will or hostility" between the races. Furthermore, the UOA outlawed any organization that was "controlled by or affiliated to or participates in the activities or promotes the objects or propagates the opinions of any organization outside the colony". The executive's banning of an organization was "not open to question in any court of law," and the burden of proving that one was not a member of a banned organization fell on the accused. Attendance at a meeting or possession of books, writings, accounts, documents, banners, or insignia "relating to an unlawful organization" were prima facie evidence of membership "until the contrary is proved." Prosecution of such offenses could be held in camera. Finally, the act provided for the complete indemnification of police and civil servants for actions connected with enforcing the measure. Between 1960 and 1965, 1,610 Africans were prosecuted and 1,002 convicted under this law.
The Preventive Detention Act (PDA) was introduced to continue the detention of ANC members who had been arrested and held without charge during the state of emergency. The act authorized the detention of persons "concerned," "associated," or "supporting" "any of the activities of any organization which led to the present state of emergency" and persons considered "potentially dangerous to public safety or public order." The decision as to whether individuals were "potentially dangerous" was left to the governor, which in practice meant the Minister of Justice and Internal Affairs.
The act established a Review Tribunal—composed of a judge, a magistrate, and a Native Commissioner—to review annually the case of each detainee and recommend release or continued detention. Tribunal proceedings were held in camera; deliberations depended heavily on the evidence of the police Special Branch; and the minister was not obliged to follow the tribunal's recommendations. The tribunal rarely advised the release of detainees, and its lack of objectivity was reflected in its general report on the emergency and detention exercise of 1959, which completely whitewashed the regime's actions. These provisions were widely seen as window dressing to provide legitimacy to the suspension of habeas corpus without any real Judicial Review.
The Native Affairs Amendment Act, was introduced in 1959 to prohibit any "native" from making statements or acting in a way "likely to undermine the authority" of, or bring into "disrepute," governmental officials, chiefs, or headmen. The act abolished meetings of twelve or more "natives" without the permission of the Native Commissioner. Hence, the rural areas became much less accessible to black nationalist organizers. This act severely curtailed the freedom of speech of the majority and made many feel that they had no or very little lawful mechanism of havening their grievances addressed.
Intended to paralyze black opposition and prevent political violence, the state of emergency proved a self-fulfilling prophecy. State repression deepened black alienation from the regime and suggested to some that peaceful political organizing was a dead end. With the black leadership in detention, the political vacuum was filled by the more militantly inclined. In July and October 1960 large-scale demonstrations and rioting broke out in black townships.
As a result of African impatience with the pace of reforms and then in opposition to increased repression new black political parties had formed. They agitated both politically and violently sometimes resorting to sporadic acts of sabotage. At the forefront of this move was the Zimbabwe African Peoples Union (ZAPU), mostly Ndebele
, led by Joshua Nkomo
. It was shortly joined by the Zimbabwe African National Union
(ZANU), mostly Shona
, a breakaway group under Ndabaningi Sithole
. After the collapse of the federation in 1963, both ZAPU and ZANU were banned and the majority of their leaders imprisoned.
(RF) won the elections under the leadership of Winston Field
. It soundly rejected an accommodationist solution and sharpened racial polarization. The black majority hoped that the British government would end white minority rule. Against this background the government wanted to pursue independence to forestall black majority rule. Field's Cabinet colleagues, considered him too weak to give Britain an ultimatum on independence and put pressure on him to go. He resigned in April 1964 and was succeeded by Ian Smith
, an ardent advocate of unconditional independence. In the 1965 general election
, Smith received his mandate to pursue independence vigorously and if necessary illegally and unilaterally. The Rhodesian Front swept 79.3 percent of the vote (up from 56.5 percent in 1962), and its victory confirmed that the old UFP—now the Rhodesia party—was a spent force.
and the British
colony
of Southern Rhodesia
became the unrecognized
Republic of Rhodesia
.
. However, Zimbabwe Rhodesia was not to last long.
The Lancaster House Agreement
stipulated that control over the country be returned to the United Kingdom
in preparation for elections to be held in the spring of 1980. On December 11, 1979, the Constitution of Zimbabwe-Rhodesia (Amendment) (No. 4) Act received Presidential Assent and Lord Soames
arrived the next day to take control. The name of the country formally reverted to Southern Rhodesia
at this time, although the name Zimbabwe Rhodesia remained in many of the country's institutions. From December 12, 1979, to April 17, 1980, Zimbabwe Rhodesia was again the British colony
of Southern Rhodesia. On April 18, Southern Rhodesia became the independent Republic of Zimbabwe
.
Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation , was a semi-independent state in southern Africa that existed from 1953 to the end of 1963, comprising the former self-governing colony of Southern Rhodesia and the British protectorates of Northern Rhodesia,...
, and Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
became the name of the country until the creation of Zimbabwe Rhodesia
Zimbabwe Rhodesia
Zimbabwe Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Zimbabwe Rhodesia, was an unrecognized state that existed from 1 June 1979 to 12 December 1979...
in 1979. Legally, from the British perspective, the name Southern Rhodesia continued to be used until April 18, 1980, when the name Republic of Zimbabwe was formally proclaimed. The colonial history of Southern Rhodesia lasted from the British government's establishment of the government of Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia was the name of the British colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa. From its independence in 1965 until its extinction in 1980, it was known as Rhodesia...
on October 1, 1923, to Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Rhodesia
The Prime Minister of Rhodesia was the head of government in the colony of Rhodesia. Rhodesia's political system was modelled on the Westminster system and the Prime Minister's role was similar to that of the same position in other countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New...
Ian Smith
Ian Smith
Ian Douglas Smith GCLM ID was a politician active in the government of Southern Rhodesia, the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, Rhodesia, Zimbabwe Rhodesia and Zimbabwe from 1948 to 1987, most notably serving as Prime Minister of Rhodesia from 13 April 1964 to 1 June 1979...
's unilateral declaration of independence
Unilateral Declaration of Independence (Rhodesia)
The Unilateral Declaration of Independence of Rhodesia from the United Kingdom was signed on November 11, 1965, by the administration of Ian Smith, whose Rhodesian Front party opposed black majority rule in the then British colony. Although it declared independence from the United Kingdom it...
in 1965.
Origin
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
empire-builder who was one of the most important figures in British expansion into southern Africa
Southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. Within the region are numerous territories, including the Republic of South Africa ; nowadays, the simpler term South Africa is generally reserved for the country in English.-UN...
, and who obtained mineral rights in 1888 from the most powerful local traditional leaders through treaties such as the Rudd Concession
Rudd Concession
The Rudd Concession was a written mining concession or agreement that Charles Rudd secured from Lobengula, King of Matabeleland on 13 October 1888. Rudd was a business associate of Cecil John Rhodes and he obtained the concession as his agent....
and the Moffat Treaty signed by King Lobengula
Lobengula
Lobengula Khumalo was the second and last king of the Ndebele people, usually pronounced Matabele in English. Both names, in the Sindebele language, mean "The men of the long shields", a reference to the Matabele warriors' use of the Zulu shield and spear.- Background :The Matabele were related to...
of the Ndebele. The British government agreed that Rhodes' company, the British South Africa Company
British South Africa Company
The British South Africa Company was established by Cecil Rhodes through the amalgamation of the Central Search Association and the Exploring Company Ltd., receiving a royal charter in 1889...
(BSAC), would be granted exclusive mineral rights stretching from the Limpopo to Lake Tanganyika
Lake Tanganyika
Lake Tanganyika is an African Great Lake. It is estimated to be the second largest freshwater lake in the world by volume, and the second deepest, after Lake Baikal in Siberia; it is also the world's longest freshwater lake...
. Queen Victoria signed the charter in 1889. Rhodes used this document in 1890 to justify sending the Pioneer Column
Pioneer Column
The Pioneer Column was a force raised by Cecil Rhodes and his British South Africa Company in 1890 and used in his efforts to annex the territory of Mashonaland, later part of Southern Rhodesia ....
, a group of white settlers protected by well-armed British South Africa Police
British South Africa Police
The British South Africa Police was the police force of the British South Africa Company of Cecil Rhodes which became the national police force of Southern Rhodesia and its successor after 1965, Rhodesia...
(BSAP) and guided by the big game hunter Frederick Selous
Frederick Selous
Frederick Courteney Selous DSO was a British explorer, officer, hunter, and conservationist, famous for his exploits in south and east of Africa. His real-life adventures inspired Sir H. Rider Haggard to create the fictional Allan Quatermain character. Selous was also a good friend of Theodore...
, through Matabeleland and into Shona territory to establish Fort Salisbury (now Harare
Harare
Harare before 1982 known as Salisbury) is the largest city and capital of Zimbabwe. It has an estimated population of 1,600,000, with 2,800,000 in its metropolitan area . Administratively, Harare is an independent city equivalent to a province. It is Zimbabwe's largest city and its...
). In 1893-94, with the help of their new maxim gun
Maxim gun
The Maxim gun was the first self-powered machine gun, invented by the American-born British inventor Sir Hiram Maxim in 1884. It has been called "the weapon most associated with [British] imperial conquest".-Functionality:...
s the BSAP would go on to defeat the Ndebele in the First Matabele War
First Matabele War
The First Matabele War was fought in 1893-1894 between the British South Africa Company military forces and the Ndebele people. Lobengula, king of the Ndebele, avoided outright war with the British settlers because he and his advisors were mindful of the destructive power of the European weapons...
, a war which also resulted in the death of King Lobengula and the death of most of the members of the Shangani Patrol
Shangani Patrol
The Shangani Patrol was a group of white Rhodesian pioneer police officers killed in battle on the Shangani River in Matabeleland in 1893. The incident achieved a lasting, prominent place in Rhodesian colonial history.-Setting and Battle:...
. Shortly after the disastrous Jameson Raid
Jameson Raid
The Jameson Raid was a botched raid on Paul Kruger's Transvaal Republic carried out by a British colonial statesman Leander Starr Jameson and his Rhodesian and Bechuanaland policemen over the New Year weekend of 1895–96...
of the BSAP into the Transvaal Republic, the Ndebele were led by their spiritual leader Mlimo against the white colonials and thus began the Second Matabele War
Second Matabele War
The Second Matabele War, also known as the Matabeleland Rebellion and in Zimbabwe as the First Chimurenga, was fought in 1896–97 between the British troops and the Ndebele people....
(1896–97). After months of bloodshed, Mlimo was found and shot by the American scout Frederick Russell Burnham
Frederick Russell Burnham
Frederick Russell Burnham, DSO was an American scout and world traveling adventurer known for his service to the British Army in colonial Africa and for teaching woodcraft to Robert Baden-Powell, thus becoming one of the inspirations for the founding of the international Scouting Movement.Burnham...
and soon thereafter Rhodes walked unarmed into the Ndebele stronghold in Matobo Hills and persuaded the impi
Impi
An Impi is an isiZulu word for any armed body of men. However, in English it is often used to refer to a Zulu regiment, which is called an ibutho in Zulu. Its beginnings lie far back in historic tribal warfare customs, where groups of armed men called impis battled...
to lay down their arms, effectively ending the revolt.
In 1899, a Legislative Council was created with a minority of elected seats, through which the BSAC had to pass government measures. The electorate was almost exclusively white settlers, and the proportion of elected seats increased steadily over time. Prior to about 1918, the opinion among the electorate supported continued BSAC rule but opinion changed because of the development of the country and increased settlement. In addition, a decision in the British courts that land not in private ownership belonged to the British crown rather than the BSAC gave great impetus to the campaign for self-government.
Self-government
De jure
De jure is an expression that means "concerning law", as contrasted with de facto, which means "concerning fact".De jure = 'Legally', De facto = 'In fact'....
equality (in theory at least) amongst the races were maintained until 1951, when the financial qualifications were raised. The Southern Rhodesia general election of April 29, 1924, was the first election to the Legislative Assembly of Southern Rhodesia following the grant of responsible government to the colony. It saw a comprehensive victory for the Rhodesia Party, which had been formed by the supporters of responsible government.
From September 1953 to 1963, Southern Rhodesia was part of the multiracial Central African Federation, also known as the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation , was a semi-independent state in southern Africa that existed from 1953 to the end of 1963, comprising the former self-governing colony of Southern Rhodesia and the British protectorates of Northern Rhodesia,...
. The federation was set up in an effort to pool resources and markets. The economy was prosperous at the time due to a post-World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
boom. The African population opposed it because they feared that they would not be able to achieve self-government with the federal structure dominated by white Southern Rhodesians.
The federation fell apart in 1963 after much crisis and turmoil, and Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland became the independent states of Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
and Malawi
Malawi
The Republic of Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. The country is separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by Lake Malawi. Its size...
in 1964. Southern Rhodesia reverted to its status as a crown colony
Crown colony
A Crown colony, also known in the 17th century as royal colony, was a type of colonial administration of the English and later British Empire....
of Britain but was now known as Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
. From 1957 to 1960, the Southern Rhodesia African National Congress
Southern Rhodesia African National Congress
The Southern Rhodesia African National Congress was a multiracial political party in what is now Zimbabwe committed to the nonviolent promotion of Native African welfare. SRANC was the first fully fledged nationalist organization active between 1957 and 1959 before it was banned by the oppressive...
, a black led organization, sought to obtain political control for the black African majority.
The Southern Rhodesian government of Garfield Todd
Garfield Todd
Sir Reginald Stephen Garfield Todd was a reformist Prime Minister of Southern Rhodesia from 1953 to 1958 and later became an opponent of white minority rule in Rhodesia. He was born in Invercargill, New Zealand.-Background:...
attempted to introduce liberal reforms from 1953 to 1958 to increase the welfare of the black population by increasing educational access for the black majority as well as by providing better housing and healthcare. Todd, however, was forced from power when he attempted to expand the number of blacks eligible to vote from 2% to 16%. Plans were made to dispense with some of the apartheid regulations, providing for more racial equality.
Grievances of the black majority
Disturbances in what was Northern Rhodesia in 1959 and the violence against whites in the Belgian Congo
Belgian Congo
The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...
and French Congo
French Congo
The French Congo was a French colony which at one time comprised the present-day area of the Republic of the Congo, Gabon, and the Central African Republic...
in early 1959 created a climate of fear amongst the white population. As a consequence, a security crackdown in Rhodesia occurred, which was largely a preemptive strike against further nationalist organizing of blacks and against potential African unrest.
The emergency episode proved counterproductive in several respects. It ruined the prospects for genuine racial partnership, made heroes out of the detainees, and alienated moderate Africans from the Government. Indeed, black opposition at this point started to become violent. Repression of the black majority by the white minority had helped to engender the terrorism that would haunt the country for decades. To deflate the crisis atmosphere of the state of emergency and yet preserve its sweeping powers as insurance against the future, the regime sought to normalize the exceptional measures by incorporating them in statute law. Thus institutionalized, the official emergency came to an end.
Repressive acts
The 1959 Unlawful Organizations Act (UOA) outlawed certain organizations. It proscribed the Northern Rhodesian African National CongressNorthern Rhodesian African National Congress
Northern Rhodesian African National Congress was a political party in Zambia. It was formed in 1948, as the Northern Rhodesia Congress , and Godwin Lewanika, a Barotseland native from an aristocratic background, became the first president. It was the first African political party in the country...
and provided for the banning of additional organizations if their activities were deemed "likely" to disturb public order, "prejudice" the tranquility of the nation, endanger "constitutional government," or "promote feelings of ill will or hostility" between the races. Furthermore, the UOA outlawed any organization that was "controlled by or affiliated to or participates in the activities or promotes the objects or propagates the opinions of any organization outside the colony". The executive's banning of an organization was "not open to question in any court of law," and the burden of proving that one was not a member of a banned organization fell on the accused. Attendance at a meeting or possession of books, writings, accounts, documents, banners, or insignia "relating to an unlawful organization" were prima facie evidence of membership "until the contrary is proved." Prosecution of such offenses could be held in camera. Finally, the act provided for the complete indemnification of police and civil servants for actions connected with enforcing the measure. Between 1960 and 1965, 1,610 Africans were prosecuted and 1,002 convicted under this law.
The Preventive Detention Act (PDA) was introduced to continue the detention of ANC members who had been arrested and held without charge during the state of emergency. The act authorized the detention of persons "concerned," "associated," or "supporting" "any of the activities of any organization which led to the present state of emergency" and persons considered "potentially dangerous to public safety or public order." The decision as to whether individuals were "potentially dangerous" was left to the governor, which in practice meant the Minister of Justice and Internal Affairs.
The act established a Review Tribunal—composed of a judge, a magistrate, and a Native Commissioner—to review annually the case of each detainee and recommend release or continued detention. Tribunal proceedings were held in camera; deliberations depended heavily on the evidence of the police Special Branch; and the minister was not obliged to follow the tribunal's recommendations. The tribunal rarely advised the release of detainees, and its lack of objectivity was reflected in its general report on the emergency and detention exercise of 1959, which completely whitewashed the regime's actions. These provisions were widely seen as window dressing to provide legitimacy to the suspension of habeas corpus without any real Judicial Review.
The Native Affairs Amendment Act, was introduced in 1959 to prohibit any "native" from making statements or acting in a way "likely to undermine the authority" of, or bring into "disrepute," governmental officials, chiefs, or headmen. The act abolished meetings of twelve or more "natives" without the permission of the Native Commissioner. Hence, the rural areas became much less accessible to black nationalist organizers. This act severely curtailed the freedom of speech of the majority and made many feel that they had no or very little lawful mechanism of havening their grievances addressed.
Hardening opposition
In January 1960, the National Democratic party (NDP) emerged out of the ruins of the ANC. Its goals included universal adult suffrage, higher wages, improvements in African housing and education, and abolition of the Land Apportionment Act and the Land Husbandry Act. Like the ANC, the NDP had a rudimentary organization, limited resources, and no access to the press; many of its would-be leaders remained behind bars. Given the far-reaching security restrictions passed in 1959, the party's activities were bound within tight parameters. Organizing in rural areas was virtually impossible. In urban areas, however, it was attracting up to ten thousand people to its rallies, and by mid-1961, it had over two hundred fifty thousand dues-paying members.Intended to paralyze black opposition and prevent political violence, the state of emergency proved a self-fulfilling prophecy. State repression deepened black alienation from the regime and suggested to some that peaceful political organizing was a dead end. With the black leadership in detention, the political vacuum was filled by the more militantly inclined. In July and October 1960 large-scale demonstrations and rioting broke out in black townships.
As a result of African impatience with the pace of reforms and then in opposition to increased repression new black political parties had formed. They agitated both politically and violently sometimes resorting to sporadic acts of sabotage. At the forefront of this move was the Zimbabwe African Peoples Union (ZAPU), mostly Ndebele
Ndebele people (Zimbabwe)
The Ndebele are a branch of the Zulus who split from King Shaka in the early 1820s under the leadership of Mzilikazi, a former general in Shaka's army....
, led by Joshua Nkomo
Joshua Nkomo
Joshua Mqabuko Nyongolo Nkomo was the leader and founder of the Zimbabwe African People's Union and a member of the Kalanga tribe...
. It was shortly joined by the Zimbabwe African National Union
Zimbabwe African National Union
The Zimbabwe African National Union was a militant organization that fought against the standing government in Rhodesia, formed as a split from the Zimbabwe African People's Union...
(ZANU), mostly Shona
Shona people
Shona is the name collectively given to two groups of people in the east and southwest of Zimbabwe, north eastern Botswana and southern Mozambique.-Shona Regional Classification:...
, a breakaway group under Ndabaningi Sithole
Ndabaningi Sithole
Ndabaningi Sithole founded the Zimbabwe African National Union, a militant organization that opposed the government of Rhodesia, in July 1963. A member of the Ndau ethnic group, he also worked as a Methodist minister. He spent 10 years in prison after the government banned ZANU...
. After the collapse of the federation in 1963, both ZAPU and ZANU were banned and the majority of their leaders imprisoned.
1958 to 1968
From 1958 onwards, white settler politics consolidated and ossified around one issue - resistance to majority rule. The 1961 Constitution governed Southern Rhodesia and independent Rhodesia up until 1969. It used the Westminster Parliamentary System modified by a system of separate voter rolls with differing property and education qualifications. The system ensured that whites had the majority of Assembly seats. In 1962 the Rhodesia Front PartyRhodesian Front
The Rhodesian Front was a political party in Southern Rhodesia when the country was under white minority rule. Led first by Winston Field, and, from 1964, by Ian Smith, the Rhodesian Front was the successor to the Dominion Party, which was the main opposition party in Southern Rhodesia during the...
(RF) won the elections under the leadership of Winston Field
Winston Field
Winston Joseph Field MBE was a Rhodesian politician. Field was a former Dominion Party MP who founded the Rhodesian Front political party with Ian Douglas Smith. Field was born and brought up in Bromsgrove in the United Kingdom, and moved to Southern Rhodesia in 1921...
. It soundly rejected an accommodationist solution and sharpened racial polarization. The black majority hoped that the British government would end white minority rule. Against this background the government wanted to pursue independence to forestall black majority rule. Field's Cabinet colleagues, considered him too weak to give Britain an ultimatum on independence and put pressure on him to go. He resigned in April 1964 and was succeeded by Ian Smith
Ian Smith
Ian Douglas Smith GCLM ID was a politician active in the government of Southern Rhodesia, the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, Rhodesia, Zimbabwe Rhodesia and Zimbabwe from 1948 to 1987, most notably serving as Prime Minister of Rhodesia from 13 April 1964 to 1 June 1979...
, an ardent advocate of unconditional independence. In the 1965 general election
Rhodesian general election, 1965
General elections were held in Rhodesia on 7 May 1965. The election was held using two rolls, an "A" roll, which was largely white and elected 50 seats, and a "B" roll, which was largely black and elected 15 seats. Only 10,544 voters were registered on the B roll...
, Smith received his mandate to pursue independence vigorously and if necessary illegally and unilaterally. The Rhodesian Front swept 79.3 percent of the vote (up from 56.5 percent in 1962), and its victory confirmed that the old UFP—now the Rhodesia party—was a spent force.
Unilateral Declaration of Independence
On November 11, 1965, Ian Smith and the RF made a unilateral declaration of independenceUnilateral Declaration of Independence (Rhodesia)
The Unilateral Declaration of Independence of Rhodesia from the United Kingdom was signed on November 11, 1965, by the administration of Ian Smith, whose Rhodesian Front party opposed black majority rule in the then British colony. Although it declared independence from the United Kingdom it...
and the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
colony
Colony
In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....
of Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia was the name of the British colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa. From its independence in 1965 until its extinction in 1980, it was known as Rhodesia...
became the unrecognized
Diplomatic recognition
Diplomatic recognition in international law is a unilateral political act with domestic and international legal consequences, whereby a state acknowledges an act or status of another state or government in control of a state...
Republic of Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
.
Zimbabwe Rhodesia
On June 1, 1979, the white minority ruled Republic of Rhodesia was replaced by the biracially ruled Republic of Zimbabwe RhodesiaZimbabwe Rhodesia
Zimbabwe Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Zimbabwe Rhodesia, was an unrecognized state that existed from 1 June 1979 to 12 December 1979...
. However, Zimbabwe Rhodesia was not to last long.
The Lancaster House Agreement
Lancaster House Agreement
The negotiations which led to the Lancaster House Agreement brought independence to Rhodesia following Ian Smith’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence in 1965. The Agreement covered the Independence Constitution, pre-independence arrangements, and a ceasefire...
stipulated that control over the country be returned to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in preparation for elections to be held in the spring of 1980. On December 11, 1979, the Constitution of Zimbabwe-Rhodesia (Amendment) (No. 4) Act received Presidential Assent and Lord Soames
Christopher Soames, Baron Soames
Arthur Christopher John Soames, Baron Soames, GCMG, GCVO, CH, CBE, PC was a British politician belonging to the Conservative Party and the son-in-law of Winston Churchill. A European Commissioner and the last Governor of Southern Rhodesia, he had previously been the longtime Member of Parliament...
arrived the next day to take control. The name of the country formally reverted to Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia was the name of the British colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa. From its independence in 1965 until its extinction in 1980, it was known as Rhodesia...
at this time, although the name Zimbabwe Rhodesia remained in many of the country's institutions. From December 12, 1979, to April 17, 1980, Zimbabwe Rhodesia was again the British colony
Colony
In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....
of Southern Rhodesia. On April 18, Southern Rhodesia became the independent Republic of Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
.