Botswana Archives - Commonwealth Oral History Project

Interview with David McDowell

by chrismoffat | Jul 31, 2015 | Australia, Bangladesh, Botswana, Canada, CHOGM, Commonwealth Secretariat, Diplomacy, Environment, Fiji, India, Kenya, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Nuclear, Pakistan, Queen, Reflections, Rhodesia (see also Zimbabwe), Singapore, Small States, South Africa, Sport, Technical Assistance, Uganda, United Kingdom, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcripts: Part One (24 June 2014); Part Two (2 July 2014); Appendix One (on Nelson Mandela); Appendix Two (on Idi Amin). Biography: McDowell, David Keith. 1937- . Born in Palmerston North, New Zealand. Educated at Victoria University of...

Interview with Moses Anafu

by chrismoffat | Jul 16, 2015 | Apartheid, Bangladesh, Botswana, Cameroon, Cold War, Commonwealth Secretariat, Democracy, Diplomacy, Elections, Gambia, Ghana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rhodesia (see also Zimbabwe), Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, United Kingdom, Zambia, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcripts: Part One (17 June 2014); Part Two (13 July 2014); Part Three (19 November 2014). Appendices: One – Interview Inserts (6 May 2015); Two – Secretariat Analysis of 1979 Internal Settlement in Zimbabwe/Rhodesia; Three –...

Interview with Sandra Pepera

by chrismoffat | Feb 23, 2015 | Apartheid, Barbados, Botswana, Cameroon, Canada, Commonwealth Secretariat, Constitutional Change, Democracy, Development, Elections, Fiji, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guyana, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Law, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Queen, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, United Kingdom, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcript. Biography: Pepera, Sandra. 1959- . Lecturer in Political Science and International Relations at the University of Ghana, 1983-1994. Analyst in the Political Affairs Division, Commonwealth Secretariat, 1995-2000. Joins the British civil...

Interview with RF ‘Pik’ Botha

by chrismoffat | Feb 16, 2015 | Angola, Apartheid, Botswana, CHOGM, Cold War, Commonwealth Secretariat, Democracy, Development, Diplomacy, Elections, Mozambique, Namibia, Nuclear, Race, Reflections, Rhodesia (see also Zimbabwe), South Africa, United Kingdom, United Nations, USA, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcript; Appendix One; Appendix Two. Biography: Botha, Roelof Frederik ‘Pik’. 1932- . Born in Rustenburg, Transvaal Province, Union of South Africa. Studied at the University of Pretoria before beginning a career in the South African foreign...

Interview with Carolyn McMaster

by rcraggs | Jun 10, 2014 | Apartheid, Australia, Botswana, Canada, CHOGM, Civil Society, Commonwealth Secretariat, Constitutional Change, Decolonisation, Democracy, Development, Diplomacy, Good Governance, Rhodesia (see also Zimbabwe), Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Technical Assistance, Uncategorized, United Kingdom, Zambia, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcript. Biography: McMaster, Carolyn. University of Toronto (Honours BA in Political Science and Economics) and the London School of Economics (M.Phil in International Relations). Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), Policy...

Interview with Vic Zazeraj

by rcraggs | Jan 20, 2014 | Apartheid, Botswana, Cold War, Commonwealth Secretariat, Constitutional Change, Democracy, Elections, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Race, Rhodesia (see also Zimbabwe), South Africa, Tanzania, Uncategorized, United Kingdom, Zambia, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcript. Biography: Zazeraj, Victor. South African Foreign Service, 1974. Private Assistant to Pik Botha, 1981-1986; Consul-General in California 1986-1990; Director of the Foreign Ministry during South Africa’s time of political transition...

« Older Entries

Definitioner

Kent Durr

Kent Durr (b.1941) is a South African political figure and diplomat who served as his country’s Ambassador (1991-94) and subsequently High Commissioner (1994-95) to the United Kingdom. Durr had been Minister of Trade, Industry and Tourism in the Cabinet of FW de Klerk (1989-91) but was later associated with the African Christian Democratic Party, with whom he was re-elected to the House of Assembly in 2004.

Christopher Soames

Arthur Christopher Soames, Baron Soames, (1920-1987) was a British Conservative politician who served as the last Governor of Southern Rhodesia (1979-80). He served the Government of Harold Macmillan as Secretary of State for War and as Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and also served as British Ambassador to France (1968-72) and European Commissioner for Trade and External Relations (1973-77).

South African Defence Force

The South African Defence Force (SADF) was the name of the South African armed forces from 1957 until 1994, to be succeeded in 1994 by the South African National Defence Force. The SADF combined a conventional military strategy of securing the borders of the Republic with a mandate to counter internal threats to the state. During apartheid, this involved quelling violent opposition to minority rule.

Marlborough House

Marlborough House is a 17^th century mansion in the City of Westminster, central London, which has served as the headquarters of the Commonwealth Secretariat since 1953.

Number 10

‘Number 10’ refers to 10 Downing Street, the official residence of the British Prime Minister in London and the headquarters of the British Government.

Govan Mbeki

Govan Archibald Mvuyelwa Mbeki (1910-2001). South African politician and anti-apartheid activist. He is the father of the former South African President Thabo Mbeki.

Verkrampte

The Verkrampte were a section of the South African National Party who favored strict segregation in all areas of society.

UNITA

UNITA (National Union for the Total Independence of Angola) is an Angolan political party founded in 1966. It thought against the MPLA (Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola) in the Angolan Civil War (1975-2002), receiving military aid from the United States and South Africa.

SNAFU

Military slang meaning that a situation is bad, but that this is the normal state of affairs.

Rusty Evans

Leo Henry “Rusty” Evans. South African politician. Director-General of the South African Department of Foreign Affairs, 1992-97.

RENAMO

RENAMO (Mozambican National Resistance) is a Mozambican political party, founded in 1975 as an anti-Communist organisation. It fought against the Mozambique Liberation Front (FRELIMO) in the Mozambican Civil War (1976-1992) and received military support from South Africa.

OPCs

Other People’s Cigarettes.

OAU

Organisation of African Unity. Founded in 1963 to act as a collective voice for African Nations, it was replaced by the African Union in 2002.

Nita Barrow

Nita Barrow (1916-1995). Governor General of Barbados (1990-1995) and a member of the Eminent Persons Group that visited South Africa in 1986.

Niel Barnard

Dr Niel Barnard (b. 1949). Former head of the South African National Intelligence Service (1980-92), which came into being under him in 1980.

Mathews Phosa

Matthews Phosa (b. 1952). South African politician, anti-apartheid activist and member of the ANC.

Leon Wessels

Leon Wessels (b.1946). South African politician and member of the National Party during the Apartheid era.

Laurens Van der Post

Laurens Van der Post (1906-1996). Afrikaner journalist, author and political advisor to British heads of government, notably Margaret Thatcher. Van der Post was a close friend of Prince Charles and the godfather of Prince William.

Kaiser Matanzima

Kaiser Matanzima (1915-2003). State President of the Transkei, one of the TBVC states, 1979-86.

Jacinto Veloso

Jacinto Veloso. Mozambican politician and member of the FRELIMO party. After Mozambican independence he served variously as Minister for Economic Affairs, Minister of International Cooperation and Minister of Information.

Idi Amin

Idi Amin (c. 1925-2003). Became President of Uganda, 1971-79, after seizing power through a military coup.

Hilgard Muller

Hilgard Muller (1914-1985). South African politician and member of the National Party. He was Minister of Foreign Affairs, 1964-77.

Herstigte Nasionale Party

The Herstigte Nasionale Party (Reconstituted National Party) is a South African political party formed in 1969 by Albert Hertzog as a right-wing splinter group from the then ruling National Party.

Erika Theron

The Erika Theron Commission was appointed to study the position of the non-white South African population, and to make recommendations as to how their position could be improved. The subsequent Report was published in June 1976.

Theron Commission (Erika Theron)

Theron Report (Erika Theron)

Die Burger

Die Burger is a South African Afrikaans-language daily newspaper established in 1914.

Brand Fourie

Brand Fourie (1917-2008). South African politician. Secretary of Foreign Affairs during the 1970 and early 1980s. From 1982 to 1985 he was South African Ambassador to the United States.

Bishop Muzorewa

Bishop Muzorewa (1925-2010). Briefly Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Rhodesia from June-December 1979, following the Internal Settlement, an agreement between Muzorewa and then Prime Minister of Rhodesia, Ian Smith. Muzorewa was defeated in elections following the Lancaster House agreement.

Beeld

Beeld is a South African Afrikaans-language daily newspaper established in 1974.

Basil D’Oliveira

Basil D’Oliveira (1931-2011). South African-born cricketer who played for England. England’s 1968 tour to South Africa was cancelled because of D’Oliveira’s inclusion in the squad.

Barend du Plessis

Barend du Plessis (b.1940). South African politician, was a member of the National Party and Minister of Education and Training (1983-84) and Minister of Finance (1984-1992).

Andries Treurnicht

Andries Treurnicht (1921-1993). South African politician, National Party MP from 1971. In 1982, along with 22 other MPs, he quit the party to found the Conservative Party of South Africa, which he led until his death.

Alfred Nzo

Alfred Nzo (1925-2000). Secretary General of the ANC (1969-1991) and South African Minister of Foreign Affairs (1994-1999).

African National Congress

African National Congress. A South African political party, founded in 1912, that opposed apartheid and has been South Africa’s governing party since 1994.

Whitehall

London street. Site of many government buildings, the term ‘Whitehall’ is often used to refer to the bureaucracy of the British government.

Westminster Abbey

An ancient church in London. The traditional venue for British coronations.

John Vorster (BJ Vorster)

Balthazar Johannes 'John' Vorster (1915-1983). South African politician, served as Prime Minister (1966-1978) and State President (1978-1979).

Venda

A quasi-independent state founded within South Africa for the Venda people. Formed in 1973 by the apartheid government and abolished in 1994.

United Nations. Major international organisation, founded in 1945.

TBVC

The four Bantustans (Transkei, Bophutatswana, Venda and Ciskei) that were intended to become fully sovereign nations.

SWAPO

South West Africa People’s Organisation. A Namibian political party founded in 1960 to campaign for independence; it has governed Namibia since 1990.

Walter Sisulu

Walter Sisulu (1912-2003). South African anti-apartheid activist who was Secretary-General of the African National Congress from 1949 to 1954. He was Deputy President of the ANC from 1991 to 1994.

Shona

a Bantu language spoken by the Shona peoples of Zimbabwe and Zambia.

Security Council

A body, part of the United Nations organisation, charged with upholding of global peace and security.

Malcolm Rifkind

Sir Malcolm Rifkind (b.1946) is a British politician who served various ministerial roles in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major, including Secretary of State for Defence (1992-95) and Foreign Secretary (1995-97). From 2010 to 2015, Rifkind was Chair of the Parliament Intelligence and Security Committee.

Robin Renwick

Lord Renwick of Clifton (b. 1937). British diplomat. Head of Chancery, British Embassy, Washington, 1981-84; Assistant Under-Secretary of State, FCO, 1984-87; British Ambassador to South Africa, 1987-91, and to the United States, 1991-95. Author of 'Unconventional Diplomacy in Southern Africa' (Palgrave, 1997).

Cyril Ramaphosa

Cyril Ramaphosa (b. 1952). South African politician and trade union leader.

PAC (Pan-Africanist Congress)

The Pan-Africanist Congress (PAC) is a left-wing Black Nationalist political movement in South Africa, founded by ex-African National Congress activist Robert Sobukwe in 1959. During the anti-apartheid struggle, the PAC represented a radical perspective focused on black power as against than the ANC’s multi-racial openness.

Aziz Pahad

Aziz Pahad (b. 1940). South African politician and anti-apartheid activist, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs (1994-).

Organisation of African Unity

An international organisation for African states founded in 1963.

General Obasanjo (Olusegun Obasanjo)

Olusegun Obasanjo (b. 1937). Nigerian Head of Federal Military Government (1976-1979) and President (1999-2007). He was Co-Chairman of the Commonwealth Eminent Persons Group on South Africa (1985-1986).

Julius Nyerere

Julius Nyerere (1922-1999). Tanzanian politician and President (1961-1985).

Non-aligned movement

An international organisation of countries that are not aligned with any manjor world power, founded in 1961.

Joshua Nkomo

Joshua Nkomo (1917-1999). Zimbabwean nationalist and leader of ZAPU.

Nkomo (Joshua Nkomo)

Joshua Nkomo (1917-1999). Zimbabwean nationalist and leader of ZAPU.

Nkomati Accord

The Nkomati Accors was a non-aggression treaty signed by the governments of Mozambique and South Africa in 1984.

Negotiating Concept

The 'Negotiating Concept' document was a proposal presented by the Commonwealth Eminent Persons Group in 1986, suggesting that the South African government release political prisoners and lift bans on anti-apartheid political organisations, and that anti-apartheid groups should suspend the use of violence and enter negotiations with the government.

MPLA

People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola – Labour Party is an Angolan political party founded in 1956. It has ruled since Angola gained independence from Portugal. It fought against UNITA during the Angolan Civil War (1975-2002).

Roelf Meyer

Roelf Meyer (b. 1947). South African politician. Served as a minister in the governments of F.W. De Klerk and Nelson Mandela (1991-1996).

Thabo Mbeki

Thabo Mbeki (b.1942). South African politician. He has served as an African National Congress negotiator in the 1980s and 1990s, and as South African Deputy President (1994-1999) and President (1999-2008).

Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela (b. 1918). South African anti-apartheid campaigner and politician, served as South Africa’s first post-apartheid President (1994-1999).

Moni Malhoutra (Manmohan Malhoutra)

Manmohan Malhoutra (b. 1937). Indian diplomat, served in the Secretariat of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi from 1966 to 1973 then joined the Commonwealth Secretariat in London, in 1974, to run the International Affairs Division.

Lucas Mangope (President Mangope)

Lucas Mangope (b. 1923). President of Bophuthatswana, a South African Bantustan, from 1977 to 1994.

Mac Maharaj

Mac Maharaj (b. 1935). South African politician and activist, served as Minister of Transport (1994-1999) in the government of Nelson Mandela.

Magnus Malan

Magnus Malan (1930-2011). South African soldier and Minister of Defence (1980-1991).

Samora Machel

Samora Machel (1933-1996). Mozambican soldier and politician, served as President (1975-1986).

Lancaster House

A London mansion house, frequently used as the venue for decolonisation negotiations between the 1940s and 1970s. It was the site of the Lancaster House Agreement in December 1979, for instance, which brought an end to white rule in Rhodesia.

FW de Klerk

FW de Klerk (b. 1936). South African politician and State President (1989-1994).

Jan Smuts Airport

An airport in Johannesburg, now known as O.R. Tambo International Airport.

Douglas Hurd

Lord Hurd of Westall (b.1930), British politician prominent during the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major. Minister of State, Foreign & Commonwealth Office (1979-1983), where he acted as Minister for Europe, that office's inaugural holder; Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1984-85); Home Secretary (1985-59); and Foreign Secretary (1989-95).

Geoffrey Howe

Geoffrey Howe (b. 1926). Lord Howe of Aberavon. British politician, held various Cabinet positions in Margaret Thatcher’s government including Foreign Secretary (1983-1989).

Chris Heunis

Chris Heunis (1927-2006). South African politician who held various ministerial positions from 1978 to 1989, including Minister for Constitutional Development (1982-1989).

Front Line States

A group of southern African states formed in 1970, which campaigned for democratic majority rule in South Africa.

FRELIMO

FRELIMO (Mozambique Liberation Front) was formed in 1962 as a Mozambican liberation movement. Since independence in 1975 it has been the ruling political party in Mozambique.

Malcolm Fraser

Malcolm Fraser (b. 1930). Prime Minister of Australia (1975-1983). Fraser also served as Co-Chairman of the Commonwealth Eminent Persons Group on South Africa.

EPG

Eminent Persons Group. A group of well-known individuals chosen by the Commonwealth to research a specific issue. The 1985 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting appointed an EPG to report on apartheid in South Africa, published in 1986 as Mission to South Africa. A second EPG was appointed in 2009 and tasked to produce a report on Commonwealth reform for 2011.

Downing Street

London thoroughfare. Number ten is the official residence of the British Prime Minister.

Commonwealth Secretariat

The Commonwealth Secretariat is the principal inter-governmental body of the Commonwealth, responsible for promoting cooperation between members. Founded in 1965.

Cold War

A period of ideological tension from around 1945 to 1991 between capitalist nations led by the USA and communist nations led by the USSR.

CODESA

The Convention for a Democratic South Africa (CODESA) is the name for a series of multi-party negotiations on the ending of apartheid in South Africa, hosted in 1991 and 1992. CODESA I took place in December 1991, nearly two years after the unbanning of political parties and the release of Nelson Mandela. CODESA II began in May 1992, though negotiations collapsed following the Boipatong massacre in June.

CHOGM

Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. Every two years Commonwealth heads of government meet to discuss global and Commonwealth issues, with the aim of promoting common initiatives.

Prince Charles

Prince Charles (b. 1948). Heir to the throne of the UK and the other territories for which the British monarch is also Head of State.

Peter Carrington

Peter Carrington, 6th Baron Carrington (b. 1919). British politician and member of the Conservative party. He was Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1979-82) and 6th Secretary General of NATO (1984-88). In 1979 he chaired the Lancaster House conference.

Lord Carrington (Peter Carrington)

Chequers

A British country house used by the Prime Minister.

Buthelezi

Mangosuthu Buthelezi (b. 1928). South African politician, founded the Inkatha Freedom Party in 1975, and served as South African Minister of Home Affairs from 1994 to 2004.

P.W. Botha (Pieter Willem Botha)

Pieter Willem Botha (1916 –2006). South African politican, served as Prime Minister (1978-1984) and the first executive State President (1984 to 1989).

Pik Botha

Roelof Botha (b. 1932).South African politician and Minister for Foreign Affairs (1977-1994).

Anthony Barber

Anthony Barber (1920-2005). British politician, who served in a variety of ministerial positions including as Chancellor of the Exchequer (1970-1974). He also served on the Commonwealth Eminenet Persons Group on South Africa (1985-1986).

Bandung

The 1955 conference in Bandung, Indonesia, was a major meeting of Asian and African nations that condemned colonialism.

Apartheid

A system of legally enforced racial segregation implemented and upheld by the National Party in South Africa from 1948 – 1994

Emeka Anyaoku

Emeka Anyaoku (b. 1933). Nigerian diplomat. Served as Head of the Commonwealth International Affairs Division (1973-1977), Assistant Secretary General (1977-1979); Deputy Secretary General (1979-1991); Secretary General (1991-2001).

ANC

African National Congress. A South African political party, founded in 1912, that opposed apartheid and has been South Africa’s governing party since 1994.

Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Thatcher (1926-2013). British politician and Prime Minister (1979-1990).

Mrs Thatcher (Margaret Thatcher)

Margaret Thatcher (1926-2013). British politician and Prime Minister (1979-1990).

Interview with David McDowell

Interview with Moses Anafu

Interview with Sandra Pepera

Interview with RF ‘Pik’ Botha

Interview with Carolyn McMaster

Interview with Vic Zazeraj

Recent Posts

Tags