Zipra / MK prisoners in Rhodesia

The Rhodesian government responded to the Wankie campaign by passing a legislation in September 1967, making it capital offence for anyone to be found in possession of 'arms of war'. Intended to strengthen the existing Law and Order( Maintenance) Act ( LOMA), which allowed for a maximum prison sentence of 20 years, the amendment laid down that any persons found in possession of arms of war defined as grenades, bombs or similar missiles or devices, explosives, ammunition, or fire arms - would be subjected to the death sentence unless he can prove beyond reasonable doubt that he had no intention of endangering the maintenance of law and order in Rhodesia or neighboring country. It also provide 30 years for anyone committing any act of terrorism or sabotage.

On 9 November 1967, Robert Dube, Jeffrey Ngwenya, Joseph Ndhlovu, Freddy Mnisi, Jackson Mpala, Actwell Siwela, and Jonathan Moyo were found in the Rhodesian High Court of murders of Corporal Davison and private Korani of the Rhoeesian African Rifles. They had initially been charged, in August 1967, with unlawful possession of offensive weapons and materials including hand grenades classified as bombs in terms of Section 36 (1) of the LOMA. All were sentenced to death and their appeal were dismissed. Moyo had admitted in a statement that he was a leader of the unit during the battle and he was actively involved. He told the police at the scene: 'Our aim was to fight, not to surrender'. During the trial however, he maintained a defiant silence. The court was unable to prove which of the accused had fired the fatal shorts, but concluded that all of them had fired their weapons at some point during the battle, and convicted them on the basis of common purpose.

Three weeks later, William Motau, Tennis Khumalo, Kayeni Dube, Abel Moyo, Morris Ncube, Harry Hadebe and Thulani Bophela were convicted of the murders of Sergeant Major Timitiya and Lieutenant Smith of the RAR, also during the Wankie campaign. The state claim they have been found possession of offensive weapons and materials, including rockets and grenades, on 22 August. Abel Moyo Morris Ncube, Harry Hadebe and Thulani Bophela were also found guilty of murdering Patrol Officer Thomas of the BSAP and Lance Corporal Cosmos of RAR. They were also accused of throwing had grenades and wounding several members of the security forces in the contravention of Section 37 of LOMA. All were sentenced to death. Handing down his judgement, Mr Justice D Davies said: All the accused were enthusiastic supporters of the cause of terrorism for which they entered this country, and of course their offences are extremely serious. This much can be said them, that however misguided they were in their beliefs, they fought as soldiers with their own lives at stake, and this feature distinguished their behaviour from from the covert and desperate conduct of other terrorists, who have attacked and killed defenceless civilians and their wives, and also distinguishes them from from the ordinary run of brutal and cold-blooded murders who are sentenced to death for the above reasons. I would respectfully recommend that consideration be given to commuting their sentences to life imprisonment.

As the behaviour of the guerrillas was akin to that of professional soldiers, the judge would have acted in accordance with the Geneva Convention if he had recommended that they be treated as prisoners of war instead of criminals. Their death sentences were later commuted to life imprisonment. Among the guerrillas captured by the joint Rhodesia- South African security forces during the Sipolilo campaign was Isaac Maphoto, one of 32 sentenced to death by Judge Davies in the Salisbury High Court on 9 August 1968. They were reprieved on 11 March 1969, and their sentences commuted to the life imprisonment. Maphoto was transferred to Khama Maximum Prison in December 1969, where he remain until his release following Zimbabwean independence in 1980. Maohoto was offered £50 000 to work for CIO which he turned down:

I told Inspector Jock McGuinness that what he was trying to do was against my convictions. The best thing he could do was to hang me together with my comrades, and bury me with them in the same grave. I was sent here to fight and free my people. I had no mission to go to South Africa.

Thomas Makoni, Jonathan Maradza, Amido Chingura, Joseph Muyambo and Fungai Bere were found guilty of unlawful possession of arms of war and the intention to endanger the maintenance of law and order, in contravention of section 48A of the LOMA. They were all sentenced to death.

Makoni, Maradza and Muyabo refused to exercised their right of appeal, since they viewed the court as biased in its dealings with freedom fighters. Chingura's appeal was dismissed, but Fungai Bere's sentence was overturned on appeal. He maintained that he was not member of the unit that originally entered Rhodesia from Zambia, but had met his co-accused near Makuti.

 The Appeal Court ruled that Bere's moral guilt was less than that of the others, and that his cooperation with the police after his arrest was mitigating factor that justified a lengthy spell in prison rather than the death penalty. A Ndlovu and 31 others were convicted of contravention Section 48A of the LOMA, which carried a mandatory death sentence.

Their appeal was dismissed on 3 December 1968 and the Minister of Justice, Desmond Lardner-Burke, observed: The accused were members of a gang of terrorist who entered Rhodesia from Zambia with large quantity of arms of war during the period December 1967 to May 1968. The object of incursion was to indoctrinate and train local inhabitants and thereafter, order them to launch an armed attack upon the government of this country. Most of the accused in statements to the police or in court admitted that they willingly participated in the scheme. The trial Judge stated that, at the time the accused were convicted, the death sentence was mandatory and the position was that the court had no discretion in this regard.

The Minister noted that most of the accused were not involved in an attack on members of the security forces at any stage. Only two of them were in a group that fired on a patrol led by Lieutenant Strong on 20 March 1968. Since the security had suffered no harm during the engagement, the Minister felt that more lenient sentence was warranted, but the court had been required to act in accordance with the law. However, the minister recommended that consideration be given to commuting the death sentences to the life imprisonment. Ultimately a large number of convicted terrorist had their death sentences commuted, and the law was amended to allow judges to exercise their discretion on a case by case basis.

This followed an international outcry following the execution of James Ndlhamini, Victor Mlambo and Duly Shamrock, members of the 1966 ZANU Crocodile Gang that operated in the Melsetter ( Chimanimani) area. The commonwealth Secretary had recommended that the Britain's Queen Elizabeth should exercise her rights to pardon the three and that they should be sentenced to life imprisonment instead of death.

The Rhodesian cabinet rejected this decision as unconstitutional and said it was designed to undermine the Smith Government. In terms of Rhodesian law, only the head of government had the right to pardon a condemned prisoner, and the cabinet decided to ignore the royal pardon.

The ANC leadership in Lusaka was deeply concerned about the hanging of the three ZANU guerrillas and cabled a massage to UN Secretary General U That, declaring their executions a crime against humanity. The ANC also urged the UN Security Council to take positive action against Britain and the Rhodesian government to prevent further 'judicial murders'. Cabinet discussions that followed led to amendment of the legislation. The ANC/ZAPU cadres were moved from death row and released when Zimbabwe became independent in 1980.

During 1960's, conditions in Rhodesian prisons were worse than in Botswana, but better than in South Africa, though there were many similarities between the Rhodesian and South African institutions. Isaac Maphoto was initially held at Karoi, but transferred to Khama Prison when he was sentenced to death. At Karoi, the cells were clean and inmates were served decent food. By contrast, Maphoto describes the food at Khama as fit for pigs, not human beings. We had three meals a day of the same type for my 12 years in jail, sometimes uncooked, with a little piece of meat once a day.

Conditions in Salisbury Prison were unbearable. Prisoners were often kept in total darkness and solitary confinement for weeks on end, denied access to light or fresh air. Cell lights would be switched on by warmers only to verify that the occupant was still alive. Some did not survive the experience. Food was inadequate and medical attention practically non-existent. Prisoners were taken to hospital only on the verge of death, and were frequently given the wrong treatment, ANC cadre Reggie Hlatshwayo died because of poor medical attention and George Mthusi, who suffered from hypertension, died within two hours of being given a range of different medication.

The South African were treated no differently than prisoners of Rhodesia origin. Both ANC and ZAPU prisoners were allowed correspondence and visit once a month. Although studies facilities were rudimentary at best, many guerrillas learned to read and write or improve their educational qualifications while in prison. They also set up informal political education programmes. Despite the fact that the Rhodesian government regarded the ANC leadership as 'terrorist' and denied them legal entry to the country, feelings of resentment against the organisation arose from the that the leadership did not visit the MK guerrillas in prison. Maphoto was one of those who opted to stay in Zimbabwe after his release. Mzamo, who claimed that he remained committed to the liberation struggle when left prison, had no regrets about his experiences, but chose to return to Zambia three years later and eschewed all further contacts with the ANC.