South Africa's Destabilization of Zimbabwe, 1980-89

242 Pages·1998·11.595 MB·English

by  John Dzimba

South Africa's
Destabilization of
Zimbabwe, 1980–89
John Dzimba
SOUTH AFRICA'S DESTABILIZATION OF ZIMBABWE,
1980-89
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South Africa's
Destabilization of
Zimbabwe, 1980-89
John Dzimba
Lecturer in International Politics
National University of Lesotho
9A
First published in Great Britain 1998 by
& MACMILLAN PRESS LTD
Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and London
Companies and representatives throughout the world
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN 0-333-71369-9
m
First published in the United States of America 1998 by
ST. MARTIN'S PRESS, INC.,
Scholarly and Reference Division,
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010
ISBN 0-312-17669-4
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Dzimba, John.
South Africa's destabilization of Zimbabwe, 1980-89 / John Dzimba.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-312-17669-4
1. Political stability—Zimbabwe. 2. Political stability—
-Economic aspects—Zimbabwe. 3. Social stability—Zimbabwe.
4. Zimbabwe—Foreign relations—South Africa. 5. South Africa-
-Foreign relations—Zimbabwe. I. Title.
DT2996.D95 1997
968.06—<lc21 97-19534
CIP
©John Dzimba 1998
All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made
without written permission.
No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with
written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and
Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by
the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1P 9HE.
Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to
criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance
with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and
sustained forest sources.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 21
07 06 05 04 03 02 01 00 99 98
Printed in Great Britain by
The Ipswich Book Company Ltd
Ipswich, Suffolk
In memory of
my father and brother
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Contents
Preface x
Acknowledgements xii
List of Abbreviations xiii
1 The Background of Destabilization: South Africa's
Regional Policy, 1977-89 1
1.1 Defining Southern Africa as a region 2
1.2 The Concept of Destabilization 7
1.3 Conditions Giving Rise to the Destabilization
Policy 8
1.4 Objectives of the Destabilization Policy 34
1.5 Application of the Destabilization Policy in
the Region 36
2 Destabilization: The Zimbabwe Experience 41
2.1 The Historical Events leading to Destabilization
of Zimbabwe 41
2.2 South Africa's Justification for Destabilizing
Zimbabwe 50
2.3 South Africa's Political Subversion and Military
Sabotage 53
2.4 The Matabeleland Problem Exacerbates
Destabilization 58
2.5 South Africa's Use of the MNR to Destabilize
Zimbabwe 61
3 Zimbabwean Defence and Security Policy in the
Context of the South African Threat 66
3.1 Zimbabwe in the Context of South Africa's
Threat 67
3.2 Defence and Security Policy 70
3.3 Zimbabwe's Military Involvement in Mozambique 75
3.4 The Internal Security Problem: Mugabe's
Commitment 80
3.5 The Politics of Zimbabwean Defence 82
4 Economic Sabotage 85
4.1 Economic Dependence 85
vn
Vlll Contents
4.2 South Africa's Political and Economic Leverage:
Zimbabwe's Options 86
4.3 South Africa's Tactics for Sabotaging the
Zimbabwean Economy 89
4.4 The Impact of the Disruption of Zimbabwe's
Transport 94
4.5 The Attempt to Alleviate the Transport Problem 98
5 Destabilization and Economic Sanctions:
The Impact on Zimbabwe 104
5.1 The International Sanctions Campaign and the
Shift in Pretoria's Strategy 104
5.2 The Beira Corridor: Zimbabwe's Mismanagement
and Failure to Act Quickly 107
5.3 Sanctions and the Consequences for Zimbabwe 119
5.4 Zimbabwe's Dilemma 123
6 Overall Economic and Social Impact of Destabilization 130
6.1 Shortages Caused by Defence Spending 130
6.2 Destabilization's Impact on Trade 137
6.3 Impact on Social Welfare 138
6.4 The Impact of Destabilization on the Agricultural
Sector 142
6.5 The Unity Accord 143
6.6 Impact on Imports and Exports 145
7 South Africa's Destabilization of Zimbabwe:
Success or Failure? 152
7.1 Failures of South Africa's Policy of Destabilization
of Zimbabwe 153
7.2 Achievements of South Africa's Policy of
Destabilization of Zimbabwe 165
7.3 A Summary of South Africa's Achievements 167
7.4 Weakening Zimbabwe by Attacking its
Neighbours 168
7.5 Factors that Led Towards the Abandonment
of Regional Destabilization and to the End of
Apartheid 173
7.6 Conclusion 176
Appendix 179
Notes 189
Contents ix
Bibliography 214
Index 221