Lusaka Manifesto

Reception

North America and former colonial powers in Europe positively received the Lusaka Manifesto, reportedly "because Africa argued, not shouted".

The manifesto was a document in the moderate line of thought on how to improve the situation of Blacks in Southern Africa. It acknowledged the right of all the whites who had settled in southern Africa to stay there. It recognized South Africa as a sovereign and independent state and proposed no changes of boundaries. It advocated boycott and isolation, rather than armed intervention or internal revolt, in South Africa. Above all, it urged negotiation and accepted that change could not come overnight.

The Lusaka Manifesto has been criticised for not involving any of the contemporary liberation movements and, more generally, of entrenching capitalism on the African continent rather than supporting the various socialist movements of that time.

The White South African regime rejected the document. The ANC was likewise opposed to the Lusaka Manifesto as in their view the declaration legitimised the apartheid regime, pronouncing its status as a sovereign and independent UN-recognised entity. They further criticised that the call for a peaceful resolution came at a time South Africa intervened militarily in Rhodesia, and that the Manifesto's wording artificially separated the liberation struggles in South Africa, South-West Africa, and Rhodesia. In 1971 the ANC stated that:

It is a tragedy that now—when black South Africa is launching an unflinching, full scale armed struggle against Vorster and his henchmen—African States [...] have seen it fit to have a 'dialogue' with white South Africa [...] If there should be a dialogue it should be between Voster and the real leaders of the people, Mandela, Sisulu, Mbeki, Kathrada, Fischer, Motsoaledi.

ANC's main disappointment, though, was that its armed struggle, and that of its likeminded freedom movements FRELIMO, MPLA, SWAPO, ZANU, and ZAPU was not directly supported and rather seen as a possible future legitimate action, even if it already was in full swing.

In the spirit of the Manifesto, Namibia conducted the Turnhalle Constitutional Conference between 1975 and 1977, an event widely criticised for providing "pseudo-reforms" entrenching the racial segregation of Namibia's population, and indirectly reinforcing the economic and political power of the white population. Several black delegates, however, welcomed the start of institutionalised communication between the parties.

Rhodesia's Ian Smith entered into several round of talks with ZANU and ZAPU. These were, however, interspersed with military action, at times supported by South Africa. In 1975 the talks finally broke down, and the Frontline States supported armed liberation from 1976 onwards.

Angola and Mozambique already were in a state of full-scale wars of independence, Angola since 1961 and Mozambique since 1964. The Manifesto made no difference to the developments in these countries. After a successful coup d'état in Portugal on 24 April 1974 the Portuguese colonial power collapsed, and Portuguese colonies were allowed to establish majority-rule governments. This development encouraged freedom movements in other white-ruled territories as well. Following the Alvor Agreement in January 1975 Angola became independent in November, ending its war of independence but starting a devastating civil war. Mozambique likewise became independent in 1975 and saw its own civil war from 1977 to 1992.

Aftermath

Only a few years after the Lusaka Manifesto the buffer of white-ruled countries north of South Africa disintegrated rapidly, forcing the apartheid regime to take a different course of politics. Mid 1976 uprisings in Soweto and Gulguleto brought the country to the brink of a civil war. The Southern African Development Coordination Conference (SADCC), the predecessor of today's Southern African Development Community (SADC) was founded in 1980 in order to "reduce member states' dependence, particularly, but not only, on apartheid South Africa". The white rulers of South Africa eventually relinquished power to the black majority in 1994 but instead of acting on the moderate suggestions of the Manifesto faced independence wars in all affected countries.

References

Further reading

• Full text of the Manifesto: