Armed Forces and Police of Independent Rhodesia (1965-1979). Part 1: Police

Abstract

This research is devoted to the study of the functioning of the Rhodesian Security Forces (the general name for the police and army forces of Rhodesia) during the years of its de facto independence from 1965 to 1979. The relevance of the study is due to the absence in domestic historiography of any fundamental research that would be devoted to this issue. The subject of the study is the Rhodesian Security Forces. In this (first) part of the work are considered the activities of the Rhodesian police after its declaration of independence. The author has studied the history of the development of the Rhodesian police from its founding until the official cessation of activity in 1980. Also, the author presents data on the number, racial composition, technical equipment, structure of units and other information about the police forces of Rhodesia. After the declaration of independence, the Rhodesian police faced difficulties, but even in such conditions they managed to maintain combat effectiveness and continue to improve. Based on this article, conclusions can be drawn about the important role played by the Rhodesian police in maintaining law and order in a country that was actually involved in the counter-terrorism struggle throughout its existence. Also, we can conclude that the Rhodesian police were only partly a “racist” structure, since most of the police were of African origin, although there were certain restrictions for them.