Rationalizing gukurahundi: cold war and South African foreign relations with Zimbabwe, 1981-1983

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dc.contributor.authorScarnecchia, Timothy (Kent State University)
dc.date.accessioned14/02/2014 14:13
dc.date.available14/02/2014 14:13
dc.date.issued2011
dc.descriptionPublished versionen_US
dc.description.abstractThis article examines the role of diplomatic relations during the first stages of the 1983 Gukurahundi in Zimbabwe. Based on a preliminary reading of South African Department of Foreign Affairs files for 1983, the article suggests that Cold War relations between Zimbabwe and the United Kingdom helped to provide cover for the Zimbabwean National Army�s Fifth Brigade�s campaign of terror. Similarly, American support for Mugabe�s claims to be a pro-Western leader committed to non-racialism helped provide international cover for the atrocities. At the same time, evidence shows high-ranking ZANU-PF officials negotiated with the South African Defense Forces in 1983 to cooperate in their efforts to keep ZAPU from supporting South African ANC operations in Zimbabwe. The 5th Brigade�s campaign therefore served the purposes of South Africa, even as ZANU-PF officials rationalized the Gukurahundi violence in international and anti-apartheid circles as a campaign against South African destabilization. The article suggests that the diplomatic history of the Gukurahundi can provide a useful lens for understanding the tragedy in both regional and international Cold War contexts.en_US
dc.description.accreditationDepartment of HE and Training approved listen_US
dc.identifier.citationScarnecchia, T. (2011). Rationalizing gukurahundi: cold war and South African foreign relations with Zimbabwe, 1981-1983. Kronos, 37: 87-103en_US
dc.identifier.issn0259-0190
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10566/1017
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.privacy.showsubmitterFALSE
dc.publisherPublished by University of the Western Capeen_US
dc.rightsCopyright author. This file may be freely used for educational uses, as long as it is not altered in any way. No commercial reproduction or distribution of this file is permitted without written permission of the copyright holder
dc.status.ispeerreviewedTRUE
dc.subjectGukurahundien_US
dc.subjectCold Waren_US
dc.subjectSouth African Foreign Relationsen_US
dc.subjectZimbabween_US
dc.titleRationalizing gukurahundi: cold war and South African foreign relations with Zimbabwe, 1981-1983en_US
dc.typeArticleen_US

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Kronos 37 (2011)