Can Anyone Bring Back the Brits?

It was a glorious, gala night for Rhodesia's whites. Champagne flowed, ladies wore elegant gowns, their men were in tuxedos and regimental kilts. At midnight, after guests saluted him with For He's a Jolly Good Fellow, Prime Minister Ian Smith rang Rhodesia's silver Independence Bell an even dozen times, greeting the start of the twelfth year since his regime unilaterally broke away from Britain. The festivities may mark the last time that whites in Rhodesia can celebrate that particular act of independence. But the mood at the ball was stubbornly defiant. In the spirit of the occasion, Smith's folk-singing son-in-law, Clem Tholet, gave a con brio rendition of Rhodesians Never Die, whose chorus vows:

We're all Rhodesians

And we'll fight through thick and thin

We'll keep our land a free land,

Stop enemies coming in.

Despite those brave words, every white Rhodesian realizes that "fighting through thick and thin" may become a savage reality if the Geneva Conference on Rhodesia remains stalemated--which it has been since it convened at the end of October. All that seems to be keeping the conference alive is a reluctance by Smith and Rhodesia's four black nationalist leaders--Joshua Nkomo, Robert Mugabe, Bishop Abel Muzorewa and the Rev. Ndabaningi Sithole--to bear the blame for torpedoing Rhodesia's last real hope of avoiding a bloody civil war.

The main task of the conference is to find some formula for transferring power from Rhodesia's white minority to the black majority. But at week's end the delegates were still unable to agree on the relatively simple matter of setting a formal date for independence (Rhodesia technically is still a British colony). The black nationalists were demanding independence in twelve months; the whites insisted that 23 months were necessary. Both sides had rejected Chairman Ivor Richard's compromise proposal of a 15-month transition. Meanwhile, Smith had flown back to Salisbury on Nov. 3, declaring he could not afford to waste time sitting around Geneva "twiddling my thumbs." In what seemed a calculated insult to the blacks, he left negotiations for his government in the hands of Rhodesia's sarcastic and hard-lining Foreign Minister, Pieter van der Byl. By last week, it was becoming increasingly clear that unless there is some progress soon, the conference could well collapse.

Queen's Representative. Ironically, the one proposal that might be acceptable to the blacks and Smith faces strong British opposition. In what amounts to a brief return of the imperial Pax Britannica, this scheme calls for London to appoint a Governor General for Rhodesia who would be that country's highest official during the transition period. The presence of a trusted representative of the Queen would reassure many blacks that the devious Smith would be unable to undermine the transfer of power. Whites would similarly be reassured that they would not become victims of vengeful black radicals. So far, though, London has balked at getting more deeply involved in Rhodesia, on the ground that it cannot accept "responsibility without power."

Meanwhile military pressure mounted on white Rhodesians. There are at least 3,000 nationalist guerrillas now operating inside the country, and isolated farmhouses near the Mozambique border come under attack almost nightly. Snipers so imperil the roadways that many Rhodesian trucks and autos now travel in convoys (see below). According to Salisbury, daring raids by Rhodesian army units into Mozambique earlier this month destroyed six guerrilla staging camps and 70 tons of war materiel. Hundreds of freshly trained insurgents, however, are poised to cross into Rhodesia now that the summer rains have started.

Smith insists that even if the Geneva talks collapse, he will honor what he says was his promise to Secretary of State Henry Kissinger--namely, the establishment of majority rule within two years. What Smith means by "majority rule," however, still remains ambiguous. He may try to limit the franchise to blacks dominated by the four pliant tribal chiefs who were elevated to Cabinet status earlier this year. That arrangement would fool no one and would leave real power in Rhodesia in white hands.

While Smith may hope that the Geneva talks fail, he is gambling that public opinion in the West will rally to him if it appears that he is sincere in seeking a negotiated settlement, while the black nationalist spokesmen are not. Aware of Smith's strategy, some black African leaders have warned the four nationalists in Geneva not to appear intransigent. Last week the Times of Zambia editorially criticized the nationalists for refusing to accept a transition. Warned the paper: "It is better to wait longer if necessary. Insistence shows lack of political acumen and competence."

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