Word: whitely
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...both constitutional changes and "pre-independence arrangements" at the conference. His decision to discuss the latter seemed to mean a role for the Front. Front forces, for their part, had to compromise too: they agreed to discuss needed modification in a constitition largely handed down from the days of white rule. For a while, it seemed that the London conference might be on the way to achieving an end to 14 years of Rhodesian political strife, seven years of civil, and over 100 years of denial of black rights...
...make matters worse, on Monday Smith stirred dissent within the Salisbury delegation by objecting to matters even Muzorewa had agreed to. He called the retention of constitutional safeguards for the 3 per cent white population of Zimbabwe "absolutely vital." It is just those safeguards, of course, which the front-line states of black Africa (Tanzania, Angola, Mozambique, Botswana and Zambia) find objectionable; even Britain, the United States and Muzorewa have conceded that safeguards must be weakened substantially. Many whites from Smith's old Rhodesia Front party also now agree that white safeguards need to be reduced. Smith's comments split...
...have some good reasons for trying to delay or avoid a constitutional settlement. It seems highly unlikely that the London conference could end successfully without acceptance of British proposals for new elections: and yet elections are about the last thing Muzorewa wants to face right now. The electorate, both white and black, is dissatisfied with his failure to bring a speedy end to the war with patriotic Front forces. Since he took office on June 1, more than 2,000 people have been killed fighting. Hundreds more have died in ground and air attacks launched from Zimbabwe against neighboring countries...
...Negotiators at the conference, though strained will continue. A possible compromise settlement might include the following elements: some role for the Front forces in the transitional Zimbabwe administration, free elections supervised by Britain or intenational bodies, a new constitution leading to true majority rule and an end to most white constitutional privileges...
...historical role as a colonial power in order to assume responsibility for the crisis in Zimbabwe, Britain has attempted to reintroduce the kind of constitutional arrangements which brought independence to many other colonies, notably Sri Lanka and Kenya. While none of these arrangements provided for the kind of white-controlled government found in Rhodesia, some did include minimal safeguards for the white population. In both Tanzania and Zambia, about 1/7 of assembly seats were reserved for whites for a limited time. The task for Britain, and for the delegates to the London conference, is to come up with an equally...