A Handful of Hard Men by Hannes Wessels

Author:Hannes Wessels
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: HISTORY / Military / World War II
ISBN: 9781612003467
Publisher: Casemate
Published: 2015-10-19T04:00:00+00:00

‘TINY’ ROWLAND

Meanwhile, in August 1978, there was some excitement on receipt of rumour that Ian Smith was in Lusaka trying to cut a deal with Nkomo. Silent in the shadows was the wily figure of Lonrho [London-Rhodesia Corporation] boss ‘Tiny’ Rowland.

Of Dutch/German/British parentage, born Roland Fuhrop in an Indian internment camp in 1917, he became a member of the Hitler Youth before moving with his parents to England where he was schooled. After the outbreak of war, Fuhrop changed his name to Rowland and served briefly in a non-combatant role in a service corps. Hostilities over, Rowland visited Southern Rhodesia and laid the seeds of an African conglomerate that would grow exponentially and soon wield enormous influence the length and breadth of the continent. Keen observers of this meteoric rise insist it was achieved only with solid financial and diplomatic support from the British government. It has also been suggested that the multinational was in fact a front for British Intelligence and for the projection of British influence by corporate means. Having selected Nkomo as ‘his man’ to rule an independent Zimbabwe, Rowland was grooming him for the top job, but then it all went quiet and the gambit fizzled.

The irony was not lost on Rhodesians. While Smith was talking multiparty democracy to Nkomo, Kaunda, the president of the host country, was announcing himself as the sole candidate of the only party legally entitled to contest the upcoming elections. All Zambians had a vote but there was only one name on the ballot. Buoyed by the arrival in Zambia of batteries of new surface-to-air missiles from the Soviet Union, secure in the knowledge it was constitutionally impossible to remove him from power, Kaunda was in firm control. Although initially positive and forthcoming in his talks with Smith, it seems a call from Nyerere warned him off the course he was on and brought the proceedings to an end.

In Mozambique the government of Samora Machel, under pressure from the Red Cross, belatedly admitted it was holding over 20,000 religious dissenters—many of whom were Jehovah’s Witnesses—in concentration camps. Despite protests Machel refused to accede to demands for their release.

From Dar es Salaam there was more good news for Mugabe and Nkomo. Julius Nyerere told a press conference that he was insisting that an absolute prerequisite for a political settlement in Rhodesia was the disbandment of the Rhodesian Army as currently constituted, to be replaced by the ‘liberation armies.’ The Tanzanian president was pleased to report that Dr Owen seemed sympathetic to his demands.

On Saturday, 2 September Rhodesia’s rugby-mad supporters tuned their radios to Pretoria where the mighty Northern Transvaal lay in wait. Boasting Springboks Ray Mordt, Ian Robertson and David Smith plus the insanely brave fullback Leroy Duberley and the long-haired flyer Danny Delport, the Rhodesians gave themselves half a chance. Despite getting no lineout ball off the towering Northern Transvaal locks and having two tries controversially disallowed, the Rhodesians came close to upsetting the Currie Cup champions. But then tragedy struck.

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