Rhodesia’s future

Press, 16 September 1976, Page 20

Rhodesia’s future

Sir, — H. M. Foss’s letter regarding Rhodesia’s future demonstrates the type of jingoistic mentality that is largely responsible for the plight of countries like Rhodesia. His use of the Second World War as a scale of value-judgment, in addition to his implication that people of certain national stock (in this case British) are more worthy than others is the type of thinking that, when issuing from Nazi mouths, hurried us into war. The British are no more estimable than any other group of human beings; the white Rhodesians are aware of racial inequalities in their country and most of them do nothing; and the South Africans, whether active in the war or not, have as massive a mess on their plates with as little alleviatory action. I was born in Britain; and I lived for four years in Africa, spending much time in both Rhodesia and South Africa. — Yours, etc.,

S. HALL. September 15, 1976.

Sir, — The proposed financial and resettlement handouts amounting to S2OOOM to the displaced master racists in Rhodesia makes bitter reading, especially when this assistance is from supposedly bankrupt Western countries where the people are forced to tighten their belts. These people have gorged and luxuriated on the sweat, poverty and premature death of a subject people for generations’ and even up to the zero hour are refusing to get off their backs. Surely Dr Kissinger can find a better solution from among his universal and collapsing box of tricks. Why not persuade these racists to accept a reversed role? Return the land to the Zimbabwe people, the rightful owners and do the menial work themselves on similar remuneration? Then how would these racists regard Maoris and Islanders? We don’t want them here. — Yours, etc.,

W. J. COLLINS. September 15, 1976.