Hours. We may be the first to face the firing squads.
This terror-stricken appraisal of the political situation by GM. Magaramamha Zimbabwe United Organisation i remarkably accurate.
And when the minutes of the internal settlement talks come known it will be a matter negotiators dream world Their ruminanons are frequently rupted by solemn cups of tea.
to remark:
*It is enjoyable to sit conference and hear politicians argue.* 'Speak for yourself is lan Smith's testy response.
Or take this little exchange at the start of one of the sessions;
'CHIRAU (ZUPO): Interjeelion Mr Chairman, I noticed that in all our deliberations we forget. ching. We forgot to start these up the time meetings ward prayer.
Bishop, couldn't one of them lead us in a word ol prayer before we start. 'SITHOLE TANCIE Chairman, the religious men here are not neutral.
INDIWENI (ZUPO): Can we start with a word of pruyer as has been suggested:
SITHOLE: If this is suggested and accepted I suggest we ask a chaplain outside this conference, someone who will be neutral and pray for all of DIWENt: May be Mr Smith сан!
'SMITH: 1 um also not neutrul Mr Chairman!"
And these are the people who daim responsibility lor country future!
Sometimes the proceedings are friendly. The Goverament delegation wishes everyone a NiPiTy Christmas and CAME selllement aroposals. African National nationalists" return the com pliment, hoping the whites will "prosper in the new year Sometimes things friendly, At one advises Bishop Muzorewa of the United African Council to go and 'swallow his head if be wants to.
But this untortunate banter doesn't upset the anticable proceedings. black delegations behave like Smith's public relations advaeel the selement, Witness this suggesting the best way to exchanue:
*SITHOLE: What about the Patriotic Front (who control the guerilla armiest, have you inviled them?
*MITH: I invited them in the same general way that I invited 'SITHOLE: would helpful for your credibility to make sure in some way that they got invited and to let the world know about it.
'SMITH: Point well tuken.* It is this problem of how to sell the whites and blacks which takes After all there 1 an the fundamentals before the talks man. At one point the Sooner he pete tee aid Mr change!
..you talk ahout u revolutien.
What we are doing here is not a revolution!
Sithole of the Alrican National Council poses the problem:
*We have to sell the selflement to people inside and outside this country.
VIDA TONE KINE AKE WHI he considered a sell-out by the country. It will be a sell-out GET In DAU, EN, USA, the these are the facts. It is no good lo think that we ignore the rest of the world, we are at odds with the world. Bishop Able Muzorowa addresses a rally in Tralalgar Square in 1972 Council need a type of selflement that removes sanctions, stops the war and give us international Tess status of a free country!" point Smith Smith approached the talks with the offer of adult suffrage exchange guarantees. Sithole generally approach:
*..the absalute demund is on e man one vote: everything else is negotiable.
The first item was what was meant by who was allowed Chikerema of the UANC argued that:
we must be prepared to see that are conclusion of these talks to the be very people who are fighting in the bush, it will be difficult to do so when 18 year olds are disenfranchised. It is she 15, 16, 17 and 18 year olds who are doing the fightingDavid Smith was douhtful and ventured some homespun psychology:
*..It is a known fact that at 21 apreement children become more serious minded and more mature.
David And Van der Byl exclaims in horror:
Does the 18 year old limit apply to women!
But fan Smith sees the sense in Chikerema's argument:
•This is a minor problens. If all enfranchisement of the 18 year olds I will not stand in the way of progress, I will go alongAny settlement The Angle-American settleproposals include the enfranchisestent of anyone under 21 UK. This The safeguards demanded by the of the judiciary all agroed with Sithole's proposal:
"There shall be un independent Then he was speaking against (Bishop delegations" adult suffrage vote?
internal settlemont sell the Influence.
high appointinent of judges.
judges be?
present anes.
The UANC appeul"Van der Byl:
step? decided the whites.
do all white. constitution and are replaced The whether che 'entrenched' in the so will the defendants. judiciary free from political ensure competent bench there shall be qualifications for the One small point: who will the States:
One can only assume the who have executed an average of one Hack a week for the past year.
had been even worse to start with: tion.
*We accept the principle of an independent judiciary with the proviso for the addition of the t...it we are council for the final Which drew the reply for Doesa't the Bishop's delegation think this is u neocolonial BISHOP: We thought this the might give added protection to talks.
which controls the civil service The Public Service Board whites. consists of three government appointees. At present they are Under the present agreed the appointees elected by serve lor a three year period participants board should he LISTSCE maaranteed constit- These you to well. longer fran for fron!! This photo was smuggled out of a Rhodesian courtroom. The judges will stay the same under th 'SMAKANGE (LANCI ..W are agreeable to the retrench(the) outgoing administration.
He added that he dida't want the a situation like the United where there is the attitude throw the rascals away and let the new faces come in. This is nor pood for smooth tramsiSo Smith generously conceded:
agreed, 1 will commit myself to appointing tal black when the time comes to replace someone.
This was gratefully acoepled.
After skipping over small questions like the composition of the judiciary, the structure civil service and deferring the question of thi antied forces to the future, thi went ou discuss constitutional safeguards for After much posturing they scats to be whites, to be whites only and a further eighr whites from the roll are be guaranteed because, as Smith suggest that whites be elected on a common roll when they are outnumbered by 30:1, can't wouldn't be the starter. will he lunghed al.. well 'SITHOLE: ...This Is difficult A blocking mechanism agreed. whereby So affirmative votes lout of 100 are needed te change the constication or 14 nepative vates to This arcangement is to last for either ten years or the life of two periments, which ever Li His hard to see how the could ever be removed their entrenched posi this aside. the frags enracion black vote and the 28 reserved while seals almost cosures a plurality the ruling Rhodesian It may scem incredible that the khodesian From: is still able to dominate the politica spene. Bur the issue of white confidence was the stick with which Smith was able to bea black delegations, And with the lurking threat of the freedom lighters in the bush, Muzorewa and company seemed to take a masochistic pleasure in it:
SITHOLE: I think it is Importunt to make progress.. We ure under pressure from people in this country and from the boys in the hash.
And another member of the Sithole delegation explained why Smith (and imperialise) has nothing to lear from them:
There are many situation where the common man na want nationalisation und we want to say from the sturt no to such pressures the government of the das... There are those whe think that mutionalisation is proper. we feel not, and we want to ensure the rights of the individnal to property that should happen.
The Government delegation with the feeling 17561 that they could rels on these people to make responsible black leaders, in the mould al orber neo-colonial states.
•VAN DER BYL: ..In the case of kenya it hirned tui after bud Man. Batswana prinilive SITUALIO a whileman was brought to administer the goverument. The best example comes from the Ivory Coast there That's just the sott of sales That would appeal to David Owen and the Labour Cion crument Our job isdo make sure the labour movemert in Britain is made internal settlement micans, nod its similaris te Cheer's plan. for the country.
For, A lan Stith repeatedly remarked: My information is Britist will along. We must not let tha -TH COOLINE LUMINEE
a union and ITS plans the AIFLD announces in detail how much it will be spending in such and such a country through such and such Through this tortuous mare some examples can be traced SOCIALIST CHALLENGE 16 March, 197B page 10
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talks. United (Chief Chirau).
The Africa in Struggle group takes a close look at the secret minutes of the Zimbabwe internal settlement" Taking part were the Rhodesian Government, the
Muzorewa), African National Council (Rev Sithole), and the Zimbabwe United People's Organisation