Revolutionary Warfare and the Zimbabwe War of Liberation: A Strategic Analysis.
Abstract
When Prime Minister Ian Smith of Rhodesia declared Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) from Britain on November 11, 1965, little did he know that no country in the world would ever formally recognize his illegal white minority regime for the entire fifteen years of its existence. This political act of defiance convinced the colonized blacks that the only way to attain black majority rule was through "the barrel of a gun". Robert Mugabe's response to UDI was. "for all those who cherish freedom and a meaningful life, UDI has set a collision course which cannot be altered. 11 November 1965 marked a turning point of the struggle for freedom in that land from a constitutional and political one to a primarily military struggle. It sounded Clausewitzian in that the pending war was an extension of politics by other means. Viewed in Mao Tse-Tung's doctrine, this vindicated his idea that, "war is politics with blood and politics is war without blood."
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1999
- Accession Number
- ADA443512
Entities
People
- Herbert Chingono
Organizations
- National War College