The Rhodesia Settlement
Annex A The Six Principles In 1965 the British Government listed five principles on which it would need to be satisfied before contemplating independence for Rhodesia: 1. The principle and intention of majority rule, already enshrined in the 1961 constitution, would have to be maintained and guaranteed; 2. There would have to be guarantees against retrogressive amendment of the constitution; 3. There would have to be immediate improvement in the political status of the African population; 4. There would have to be progress towards ending racial discrimination; 5. The British Government would need to be satisfied that any basis for independence was acceptable to the people of Rhodesia as a whole. A sixth principle was added in 1966: 6. It would be necessary to ensure that, regardless of race, there was no oppression of majority by minority or of minority by majority 2. The Options (May 1979) 1. Although Rhodesia did not figure in the election campaign it was generally regarded as the foreign policy issue on which the Conservative and Labour parties were furthest apart. The Conservatives had strongly criticised the Labour Government’s handling of the problem and failure to give encouragement to the internal settlement. The Conservative Party manifesto stated that: ‘the Conservative Party will aim to achieve a lasting settlement to the Rhodesia problem based on the democratic wishes of the people of that country. If the six principles which all British Governments have supported for the last fifteen years are fully satisfied following the present Rhodesian election, the next Government will have the duty to return Rhodesia to a state of legality, move to lift sanctions and to do its utmost to ensure that a new independent state gains international recognition’. The Leader of the Opposition sent a team of observers led by Lord Boyd to witness the Rhodesian elections. It was made quite clear that the policy of a Conservative Government would be strongly influenced by his report. 2. On 24 April the results of the Rhodesian elections were announced. Bishop Muzorewa’s party, the UANC, won 1.2 million votes, over twothirds of the votes cast, and 51 seats. The Reverend Sithole, disappointed at his failure to win more than 12 seats, denounced the results as a fraud. Chief Ndiweni’s regional party won 9 seats in Matabeleland. As a result 47
