Misplaced Pages

#435564

64-522: The name came from bhundu (meaning "bush" or "jungle"), in reference to the young boys who used to aid the nationalist guerrilla fighters in the 1970s war against the white minority government of what was then Rhodesia . Lead singer Biggie Tembo (Biggie Rodwell Tembo Marasha) was a Bhundu boy. The Bhundu Boys recorded their first 7" vinyl single (Une Shuwa Here) at Shed Studios in Harare in August 1982, as part of

128-511: A black majority government. However, this new order failed to win international recognition and the war continued. Neither side achieved a military victory and a compromise was later reached. Negotiations between the government of Zimbabwe-Rhodesia, the government of the United Kingdom, and Mugabe and Nkomo's united " Patriotic Front " took place at Lancaster House , London in December 1979, and

192-650: A camp near Pyongyang . By April 1979, 12,000 ZANLA guerrillas were training in Tanzania, Ethiopia, and Libya while 9,500 of its 13,500 extant cadres operated in Rhodesia. South Africa clandestinely gave material and military support to the Rhodesian government. The Rhodesian Front (RF)—the ruling party—took an uncompromising position against the communist ideology of the ZIPRA and ZANLA. Ian Smith further expounded this by portraying

256-411: A civil war against ZIPRA, despite the formation of a joint front by their political parties after 1978. It was ZANLA's intention to occupy the ground, supplant the administration in rural areas, and then mount the final conventional campaign. ZANLA concentrated on the politicisation of the rural areas using force, persuasion, ties of kinship and collaboration with spirit mediums. ZANLA tried to paralyse

320-443: A comeback by collaborating with a Bristol band, Startled Insects, without success. Returning to Zimbabwe in the early 1990s, he tried to self-produce some more music at Shed Studios including two albums ( Baba of Jit and Out of Africa ). Time in the studio for these albums were not paid for and Shed Studios didn’t complete final mixes. As a result neither album was properly released or published. Tembo became ill with depression, became

384-708: A double CD, under licence to Gordon Muir. The CD continues to sell and is also available to stream on iTunes and Spotify. Guitarist Rise Kagona was divorced and went to live in Scotland. He wrote a short account of the band's history. He played in Rise Kagona and the Jit Jive Band, who frequently performed in northern England and Scotland. He co-wrote and sang on "She Told You So" on Ben Avison's 2013 Good Day Mr. Magpie album. He also played with Doug Veitch, recording an album, Tanzwa Nekutambura , in 2007. Rise Kagona died following

448-539: A live tour organised by Elias, and Scottish graphic artist Gordon Muir became their manager. After touring the UK for a year, basing themselves initially in Hawick, Scotland with Muir and travelling relentlessly, the band appeared to be on the brink of a major commercial breakthrough. They were feted by Eric Clapton and Elvis Costello and Madonna asked them to be her support act at Wembley Stadium in 1987. In October 1986, just as

512-539: A long illness in Scotland on September 17, 2024, aged 62. Kuda Matimba lived in London as of 2007, playing with Harare, a group he started in 2005 together with Kenny Chitsvatsva. He had lost contact with Rise Kagona. Moyo Tembo, son of Biggie Tembo, formed a group called The Chinhoyi Superstars, who released their debut single "Woiteyiko". Biggie Tembo Jr. , a second son of Biggie Tembo, has followed in his father's footsteps and released his debut album, Rwendo , in 2010. He

576-491: A momentum and strong following. Between 1982 and 1986, The Bhundu Boys thus reached the top of the Zimbabwean music scene, with four number one hits ("Baba Munini Francis", "Wenhamo Haaneti", "Hatisitose", and "Tsvimbodzemoto"). They attracted the attention of Owen Elias and his colleague, musician Champion Doug Veitch , who released an EP on their Discafrique label in the UK under licence from Shed Studios in 1985. This attracted

640-438: A new government. The election was won by ZANU. The new government, headed by Robert Mugabe , was recognised internationally, and the country was renamed Zimbabwe . Despite the effect of economic and diplomatic sanctions, Rhodesia developed and maintained a powerful and professional military. In June 1977, Time magazine reported that "man for man, the Rhodesian army ranks among the world's finest fighting units." The army

704-517: A practising Christian, eventually hanging himself in a psychiatric hospital in 1995, where he had been sectioned for violent outbursts. Meanwhile, the band soldiered on, recording two more albums. Muir left their management in difficult circumstances as the band's income dried up. In 1996 he sold the band's house in Mortimer Road, Kensal Rise, as part of winding up the band's assets, with surviving band members reporting they received almost nothing from

SECTION 10

#1732869887436

768-457: A propaganda campaign exaggerating British involvement in the conflict in order to boost support for intervention. The Soviets were large suppliers of munitions and training, but refused to directly enter the conflict. Notebooks taken from political officers attached to insurgent groups, as well as uniforms and weaponry from the Eastern bloc confirmed Russian and Chinese sponsorship and ideology. This

832-576: A type of home guard. The war saw the extensive operation of Rhodesian regulars as well as special forces units such as the Selous Scouts and the Rhodesian SAS . The Rhodesian Army fought bitterly against the black nationalist guerrillas. The Rhodesian Army also comprised mostly black regiments such as the Rhodesian African Rifles . As the war went on, the frequent call-up of reservists

896-823: A variety of equipment and carried out numerous roles, with air power providing the Rhodesians with a significant advantage over their guerrilla enemy. The fleet consisted mainly of British aircraft and largely obsolete aircraft, such as the World War II vintage Douglas Dakota transport aircraft and the British de Havilland Vampire . The arms embargo caused a lack of spare parts from external suppliers and RhAF had to find alternative means to keep its aircraft flying. The larger South African Air Force provided extensive training, aircraft and aircrews in support of RhAF operations from 1966. The Rhodesians also used more modern types of aircraft like

960-684: The Second Chimurenga as well as the Zimbabwean War of Independence , was a civil conflict from July 1964 to December 1979 in the unrecognised country of Rhodesia (later Zimbabwe-Rhodesia and now Zimbabwe ). The conflict pitted three forces against one another: the Rhodesian white minority-led government of Ian Smith (later the Zimbabwe-Rhodesian government of Bishop Abel Muzorewa ); and militant African guerillas organisations such as Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army ,

1024-866: The 66 seat parliament for "Non-Europeans" only, with a further eight reserved for tribal chiefs. Amidst this backdrop, African nationalists advocated armed struggle to bring about black rule, primarily denouncing the wealth disparity between the races. Two rival nationalist organisations emerged in August 1963: the Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU) and the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), after disagreements about tactics, as well as tribalism and personality clashes. ZANU and its military wing ZANLA were headed by Robert Mugabe and consisted primarily of Shona tribes. ZAPU and its military wing ZIPRA consisted mainly of Ndebele under Joshua Nkomo . Cold War politics played into

1088-623: The African National Congress of South Africa) and South-West African SWAPO fighters were a major threat to Zambia's internal security. Because ZAPU 's political strategy relied more heavily on negotiations than armed force, ZIPRA grew slower and less elaborately than ZANLA, but by 1979 it had an estimated 20,000 combatants, almost all based in camps around Lusaka , Zambia. ZIPRA was responsible for two attacks on civilian Air Rhodesia Viscount aeroplanes, on 3 September 1978 and 12 February 1979 . Using SA-7 surface-to-air missiles ,

1152-653: The Angolan War of Independence (1961–1975) and Angolan Civil War (1975–2002), the Mozambican War of Independence (1964–1974) and Mozambican Civil War (1977–1992), the South African Border War (1966–1989), and the Shaba I (1977) and Shaba II (1978) conflicts. The conflict was seen by the nationalist groups and the UK government of the time as a war of national and racial liberation. The Rhodesian government saw

1216-594: The Hawker Hunter and Canberra bombers, the Cessna Skymaster as well as Aérospatiale Alouette III (SA316) helicopters until they were supplemented by the Agusta Bell 205 . Very late in the war, the Rhodesian forces were able to smuggle and use a few Agusta Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopters. At the beginning of the first war, much of Rhodesia's military hardware was of British and Commonwealth origin, but during

1280-569: The Lancaster House Agreement was signed. The country returned temporarily to British control and new elections were held under British and Commonwealth supervision in March 1980. ZANU won the election and Mugabe became the first Prime Minister of Zimbabwe on 18 April 1980, when the country achieved internationally recognised independence. The origin of the war in Rhodesia can be traced to

1344-467: The Mercedes-Benz UR-416 . During the course of the war, most white citizens carried personal weapons, and it was not unusual to see white housewives carrying submachine guns . A siege mentality set in and all civilian transport had to be escorted in convoys for safety against ambushes. Farms and villages in rural areas were frequently attacked by guerrillas. The Rhodesian government divided

SECTION 20

#1732869887436

1408-664: The Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (ZANLA), the armed wing of the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), and the Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army (ZIPRA), the armed wing of the Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU). The fighting was largely rural, as the two rival movements tried to win peasant support and to recruit fighters while attacking the local government administration and white civilians. To ensure local domination, ZANLA and ZIPRA sometimes fought against each other as well as against

1472-537: The governor , had indirectly ruled the country from 1923, when it took over from the British South Africa Company and granted self-governing status to a locally elected government, made up predominantly of Whites. Ian Smith's Rhodesian Front party was elected to power in 1962 and unilaterally declared independence on 11 November 1965 to preserve what it saw as the self-government it had possessed since 1923. The Rhodesian government contended that it

1536-648: The British L1A1 ('SLR') variant of the FAL and the older British Lee–Enfield bolt-action rifle were used by reservists and the British South Africa Police . Other weapons included the Bren LMG in both .303" and 7.62mm NATO, Sten SMG, Uzi , Browning Hi-Power pistol, Colt M16 rifle (very late in the war), FN MAG (FN MAG58) general-purpose machine-gun, 81 mm mortar , and Claymore mines. After UDI , Rhodesia

1600-415: The Rhodesian effort and economy by planting Soviet anti-tank land mines on the roads. From 1972 to 1980 there were 2,504 vehicle detonations of land mines (mainly Soviet TM46s), killing 632 people and injuring 4,410. Mining of roads increased 133.7% from 1978 (894 mines or 2.44 mines were detonated or recovered per day) to 1979 (2,089 mines or 5.72 mines a day). In response, the Rhodesians co-operated with

1664-481: The South Africans to develop a range of mine protected vehicles. They began by replacing air in tyres with water which absorbed some of the blast and reduced the heat of the explosion. Initially, they protected the bodies with steel deflector plates, sandbags and mine conveyor belting. Later, purpose built vehicles with V-shaped blast hulls dispersed the blast and deaths in such vehicles became unusual events. ZIPRA

1728-683: The Soviet Union, used communist material support to begin launching guerrilla attacks on the RSF and on Rhodesian civilians and infrastructure. The United States took the official position that it would not recognise Rhodesia as an independent state, but some American soldiers who had seen combat in Vietnam joined the Rhodesian Security Forces . The Rhodesian government created advertising campaigns in order to attract soldiers from Western countries, and

1792-618: The Studio's drive to sponsor more local music. They were one of a number of more adventurous bands that had not been contracted by the two record labels . Shed Studios was owned by Steve Roskilly and Martin Norris with engineering by Roskilly, Norris and house drummer, Bothwell Nyamhondera. They signed a formal 3 year recording contract with the studio in February 1983. A single was released on Shed Studio's own Rugare Label almost every month, so as to build up

1856-612: The Studio’s publisher Shed Music, in perpetuity. In practice, Shed Music continued to pay writer's publishing royalties. Controversially, much of their £80,000 advance from WEA was spent buying a house in Kensal Rise, West London that as of 2006 was still a source of dispute. The band played in North America, Australia and Hong Kong. But the first WEA album True Jit , produced by Robin Millar ,

1920-725: The United States with the latter three being held in high regard for their recent Vietnam War experience. Considering the arms embargo , the Rhodesian Army was well-equipped. The standard infantry weapon was the Belgian FN FAL rifle as produced in South Africa under license as the R1 rifle and supplemented by the H&;K G3 rifle that came from Portuguese forces. However, other weapons such as

1984-502: The ZIPRA or ZANLA, the RF elected to hold onto unofficial minority-rule. In ignoring other contributing factors to the conflict, Smith and the RF were able to strengthen ties with the West, but Britain remained neutral. The division between the communists and anti-communists caused the fighting to spill over the Rhodesian borders. Neighbouring African nations, supported primarily by North Korea, China, and

Bhundu Boys - Misplaced Pages Continue

2048-547: The Zimbabwean countryside and by 1979 ZIPRA were utilizing SAM weaponry to target Rhodesian civilian assets and Viscount aircraft. Just as they had done in various other African countries and conflicts, the Soviets supported opposition forces with weapons and training. Moscow also launched a propaganda campaign exaggerating British involvement in the conflict in order to boost support for intervention. The Soviets were large suppliers of munitions and training, but refused to directly enter

2112-465: The anti-communist West and to challenge the Chinese presence in the region. Soviet military technology quickly appeared in the Zimbabwean countryside and by 1979 ZIPRA were utilizing SAM weaponry to target Rhodesian civilian assets and Viscount aircraft. Just as they had done in various other African countries and conflicts, the Soviets supported opposition forces with weapons and training. Moscow also launched

2176-580: The attention of DJ's John Peel and Andy Kershaw who promoted the band on BBC Radio . In September 1985 the Studio gave notice to extend the contract for a further 3 years and the band continued to record. Given the attention of Peel and Kershaw, under further licence from Shed Studios, their first UK album, Shabhini , was released on the Discafrique label in 1986. This was a compilation of music already released in Zimbabwe. The band travelled to UK in 1986 for

2240-556: The band's second UK album Tsvimbodzemoto was about to be released in UK, on the Discafrique label by Elias, they met with Roskilly and requested that their Shed Studios contract be terminated early as manager Muir wanted to sign them to Warner Bros. Records . This was a monumental blow to the Studios and to Roskilly their erstwhile producer, in particular. It was however agreed that the contract would be nullified in return for all rights associated with existing Shed recordings, being assigned to

2304-570: The black Shona and Ndebele population were the traditional chiefs, not the ZANU and ZAPU nationalists, whom it regarded as dangerous, violent usurpers. In 1978–1979, the Smith administration tried to blunt the power of the nationalist cause by acceding to an "Internal Settlement" which ended minority rule, changed the name of the country to Zimbabwe-Rhodesia , and arranged multiracial elections, which were held in 1979 and won by Bishop Abel Muzorewa , who became

2368-502: The conflict as a fight between one part of the country's population (the Whites) on behalf of the whole population (including the Black majority) against several externally financed parties made up of predominantly Black radicals and communists. The Nationalists considered their country occupied and dominated by a foreign power, namely Britain, since 1890. The British government, in the person of

2432-473: The conflict as primarily anti-communist in nature. The Rhodesian whites viewed the British demand for majority rule as a direct attack on their way of life. Having previously witnessed the Mau Mau Rebellion , Rhodesians refused to allow the majority-rule policy to come into effect. Much of the Rhodesian economy as well as the land was controlled by white Rhodesians, and, fearing total confiscation by either

2496-551: The conflict. The Soviet Union supported ZIPRA and China supported ZANLA. Each group fought a separate war against the Rhodesian security forces, and the two groups sometimes fought against each other as well. In June 1979, the governments of Cuba and Mozambique offered direct military help to the Patriotic Front , but Mugabe and Nkomo declined. Other foreign contributions included military officials from North Korea , who taught Zimbabwean militants to use explosives and arms in

2560-567: The conflict. The Chinese, on the other hand, were limited in their abilities to offer tangible aid to the ZANLA. Chinese influence throughout the conflict was primarily focused on small scale sabotage efforts and anti-western propaganda. Inevitably, the Bush War occurred within the context of regional Cold War in Africa, and became embroiled in conflicts in several neighbouring countries. Such conflicts included

2624-681: The conquest of the region by the British South Africa Company in the late 19th century, and the dissent of native leaders who opposed foreign rule. Britons began settling in Southern Rhodesia in the 1890s, and while it was never accorded full dominion status, these settlers effectively governed the country after 1923. In his famous " Wind of Change " speech, UK Prime Minister Harold Macmillan revealed Britain's new policy to only permit independence to its African colonies under majority rule. But many white Rhodesians were concerned that such immediate change would cause chaos as had resulted in

Bhundu Boys - Misplaced Pages Continue

2688-567: The country in the place of ZANU/ZANLA. Both sides of the Cold War were involved in the Rhodesian Bush War. The Soviet Union supported ZIPRA and China supported ZANLA . Each group fought a separate war against the Rhodesian security forces , and the two groups sometimes fought against each other as well. The Soviet Union became involved in the Rhodesian Bush War to combat the push from

2752-418: The country into eight geographical operational areas: North West Border (Operation Ranger), Eastern Border (Operation Thrasher), North East Border (Operation Hurricane), South East Border (Operation Repulse), Midlands (Operation Grapple), Kariba (Operation Splinter), Matabeleland (Operation Tangent), Salisbury and District ("SALOPS"). The two major armed groups campaigning against Ian Smith 's government were

2816-436: The country's first Black head of government. Unsatisfied with this and spurred on by Britain's refusal to recognise the new order, the nationalist forces persisted. The war ended when, at the behest of both South Africa (its major supporter) and the United States, the Zimbabwe-Rhodesian government ceded power to Britain in the Lancaster House Agreement in December 1979. The UK Government held another election in 1980 to form

2880-502: The course of the conflict, new equipment such as Eland armoured cars were procured from South Africa. Several Polish-made T-55 tanks destined for Idi Amin 's regime in Uganda were diverted to Rhodesia by the South Africans, in the last year of the war. The Rhodesians also produced a wide range of wheeled mine-proofed armoured vehicles , often using Mercedes Unimog , Land Rover and Bedford truck components, including unlicensed copies of

2944-545: The deal; they suspect that Muir had actually used the band's money to buy it in the first place, using their Warner advance without permission. Muir has countered that there were no profits to divide up. The band finally called it quits in 2000 after bassist Washington Kavhai was jailed in the UK on an aggravated assault conviction. In 2001, Shed Studios issued a compilation album of all the Bhundu Boys recordings made in Zimbabwe, entitled The Shed Sessions , for release in UK on

3008-562: The former Belgian Congo after its independence in 1960. Britain's unwillingness to compromise led to Rhodesia's unilateral declaration of independence (UDI) on 11 November 1965. Although Rhodesia had the private support of neighbouring South Africa and Portugal , which still owned Mozambique , it never gained diplomatic recognition from any country. Although the vote in Rhodesia was constitutionally open regardless of race, property requirements left many Black Africans unable to participate. The new 1969 constitution reserved eight seats in

3072-505: The guerrillas shot down each plane during its ascent from Kariba Airport. ZIPRA took advice from its Soviet instructors in formulating its vision and strategy of popular revolution. About 1,400 Soviet, 700 East German and 500 Cuban instructors were deployed to the area. On the advice of the Soviets, ZIPRA built up its conventional forces, and motorised with Soviet armoured vehicles and small aeroplanes, in Zambia. ZIPRA's (i.e. ZAPU's) intention

3136-495: The late 1970s, ZIPRA had developed a strategy known as Storming the Heavens to launch a conventional invasion from Zambia, supported by a few armoured vehicles and light aircraft. An operation by the Rhodesian armed forces to destroy a ZIPRA base near Livingstone in Zambia was never launched. The ZAPU/ZIPRA strategy for taking over Zimbabwe proved unsuccessful. In any event, the transfer of power to black nationalists took place not by

3200-410: The military take-over expected by ZAPU/ZIPRA, but by a peaceful and internationally supervised election. Rhodesia reverted to British rule as the colony of Southern Rhodesia (the UK had never recognised Rhodesia's declaration of independence) and a general election took place in early 1980, supervised by British and other international forces. Robert Mugabe (of ZANLA/ZANU) won this election, because he

3264-469: The military wing of Robert Mugabe 's Zimbabwe African National Union ; and the Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army of Joshua Nkomo 's Zimbabwe African People's Union . The war and its subsequent Internal Settlement , signed in 1978 by Smith and Muzorewa, led to the implementation of universal suffrage in June 1979 and the end of white minority rule in Rhodesia, which was renamed Zimbabwe Rhodesia under

SECTION 50

#1732869887436

3328-497: The press, which irritated the rest of the band, especially guitarist Rise Kagona, and Tembo was asked to leave the band in 1990 following an altercation at Harare airport. The band continued but without the writing and vocal talents of Tembo, the band never again produced the same reception by the music press or by the public. Three members died of complications from AIDS : David Mankaba (d. 1991), his replacement Shepherd Munyama (d. 1992) and Shakespear Kangwena (d. 1993). Tembo tried

3392-444: The rest was majority black. By contrast, army reserves were largely white, and toward the end of the war were increasingly called up to deal with the growing insurgency. The regular army was supported by the paramilitary British South Africa Police of about 8,000 to 11,000 men (the majority of whom were black) and 19,000 to 35,000 police reservists (which, like their army counterparts, were largely white). The police reserves acted as

3456-409: The security forces amassed a force of nearly 1,400 soldiers who were highly trained in special forces and guerrilla warfare, bringing the total of the Rhodesian military force to over 10,000 men. The Soviet Union became involved in the Rhodesian Bush War to combat the push from the anti-communist West and to challenge the Chinese presence in the region. Soviet military technology quickly appeared in

3520-405: The security forces. ZANLA was the armed wing of ZANU. The organisation also had strong links with Mozambique 's independence movement, FRELIMO . ZANLA, in the end, was present on a more or less permanent basis in over half the country, as evidenced by the location of the demobilisation bases at the end of the war, which were in every province except Matabeleland North . They were also fighting

3584-510: Was always relatively small, just 3,400 regular troops in 1970. By 1978–79 it had grown to some 10,800 regulars nominally supported by about 40,000 reservists – although by the last year of the war, perhaps as few as 15,000 were available for active service. While the regular army consisted of a professional core of white soldiers (and some units, such as the Rhodesian SAS and the Rhodesian Light Infantry , were all-white), by 1978–1979

3648-412: Was considered too far a jump in style from their original Shed Studios' recordings (produced by Steve Roskilly) and was unfavourably received. The band began a long period of further live appearances, releasing other independent CDs, but started to fall apart. They were dropped from WEA after the commercial failure of their second album on the label. Leader Biggie Tembo achieved some celebrity on TV and in

3712-689: Was convicted of assault against a woman in 2015. Shed Studios release in Zimbabwe - Engineered Bothwell Nyamhondera Shed Studios release in Zimbabwe - Produced and engineered Stephen Roskilly Discafrique release in UK under licence from Shed Studios Warner Brothers release i UK Independent releases in UK Gordon Muir release in UK under licence from Shed Studios Contributing artist Rhodesian Bush War Lancaster House Agreement [REDACTED] 1979: [REDACTED] 1979: [REDACTED] 1979: Second Phase (1972–1979) Related incidents The Rhodesian Bush War , also known as

3776-402: Was defending Western values, Christianity, the rule of law , and democracy by fighting Communists, but it was unwilling to compromise on most political, economic and social inequalities. White Rhodesians typically believed that black grievances were not organic and endogenous in origin but were externally fomented by foreign agitators. The Smith administration claimed that the legitimate voice of

3840-464: Was heavily reliant on South African and domestically produced weapons and equipment, as well as international smuggling operations, commonly referred to as "sanction-busting". South Africa provided extensive support to Rhodesia in the form of a Lend / Lease program and both the official and unofficial support of many branches of the South African armed forces. The Rhodesian Air Force (RhAF) operated

3904-425: Was increasingly used to supplement the professional soldiers and the many volunteers from overseas . By 1978, all white men up to the age of 60 were subject to periodic call-up to the army; younger men up to 35 might expect to spend alternating blocks of six weeks in the army and at home. Many of the overseas volunteers came from Britain, Ireland, South Africa, Portugal, Hong Kong, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and

SECTION 60

#1732869887436

3968-498: Was the anti-government force based around the Ndebele ethnicity, led by Joshua Nkomo , and the ZAPU political organisation. In contrast to ZANLA's Mozambique links, Nkomo's ZIPRA was more oriented towards Zambia for local bases. However, this was not always with full Zambian government support: by 1979, the combined forces based in Zambia of ZIPRA, Umkhonto we Sizwe (the armed wing of

4032-402: Was the only major competitor of the majority ethnicity, Shona. Once in power, Mugabe was internationally recognised as Zimbabwe's leader and was installed as head of government, and had the backing of the overwhelming majority ethnic group. He was therefore able to quickly and irreversibly consolidate his power, forcing ZAPU, and therefore ZIPRA which was ZAPU's army, to give up hope of taking over

4096-399: Was to allow ZANLA to bring the Rhodesian forces to the point of defeat, and then take the victory from the much lighter forces of ZANLA and the essentially defeated Rhodesians. ZIPRA kept a light presence within Rhodesia, reconnoitring, keeping contact with the peasants and sometimes skirmishing with ZANLA. ZIPRA's conventional threat partly distracted Rhodesian forces from fighting ZANLA. By

#435564