Can Britain Stop Rhodesia?

The Rhodesian breakaway is, of course, tragic; a rending of old loyalties, a plunging of friends and kindred into unknown dangers, a further proof of the human sorrow which accompanies the liquidation of empires. And it brings nearer (though I hope and pray that it will not actually bring about) the nightmare possibility which has haunted us since the Socialists first came to power: that somewhere, some day, Britain might be taken into a war on the wrong side.

To suggest that Rhodesia’s Declaration of Independence was a shock, however, in the sense of being a surprise, is absurd. I was in Salisbury in 1961, when Roy Welensky was still considered an extremist and the new Constitution was hailed as a triumph of British diplomacy: and I said then that the Rhodesians were being fast driven to the point where they would reject Welensky’s brand of moderation and would close ranks with South Africa.

AL

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Anthony Lejeune

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The Rhodesian breakaway is, of course, tragic; a rending of old loyalties, a plunging of friends and kindred into unknown dangers, a further proof of the human sorrow which accompanies the liquidation of empires. And it brings nearer (though I hope and pray that it will not actually bring about) the nightmare possibility which has haunted us since the Socialists first came to power: that somewhere, some day, Britain might be taken into a war on the wrong side.

To suggest that Rhodesia’s Declaration of Independence was a shock, however, in the sense of being a surprise, is absurd. I was in Salisbury in 1961, when Roy Welensky was still considered an extremist and the new Constitution was hailed as a triumph of British diplomacy: and I said then that the Rhodesians were being fast driven to the point where they would reject Welensky’s brand of moderation and would close ranks with South Africa.