A Brutal State of Affairs : The Rise and Fall of Rhodesia

A Brutal State of Affairs analyses the transition from Rhodesia to Zimbabwe and challenges Rhodesian mythology. The story of the BSAP, where white and black officers were forced into a situation not of their own making, is critically examined. The liberation war in Rhodesia might never have happened but for the ascendency of the Rhodesian Front, prevailing racist attitudes, and the rise of white nationalists who thought their cause just. Blinded by nationalist fervour and the reassuring words of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and army commanders, the Smith government disregarded the advice of its intelligence services to reach a settlement before it was too late. By 1979, the Rhodesians were staring into the abyss, and the war was drawing to a close. Salisbury was virtually encircled, and guerrilla numbers continued to grow. A Brutal State of Affairs examines the Rhodesian legacy, the remarkable parallels of history, and suggests that Smith's Rhodesian template for rule has, in many instances, been assiduously applied by Mugabe and his successors. Foreword and Acknowledgements About the authors 1 A Prelude to Rhodesia 2 The Rhodesians 3 The Shaping of Rhodesian Society 4 Surviving Sanctions under UDI 5 The Rise of Black Nationalism 6 The Armed Struggle, 1972–1977 7 The British South Africa Police 8 The Central Intelligence Organisation 9 The Selous Scouts 10 The South Africans 11 Mozambique 12 Rhodesia’s External Operations 13 Approaching the Final Hours 14 High Jinks and Low Morals: The Media War 15 Rhodes’s People Bibliography Index