History@Portsmouth

University of Portsmouth's History Blog

Tag Archives | Zimbabwe

How white South Africa obstructed the decolonisation of Southern Africa during the Cold War

This is our second piece by second-year UoP history student Elliott Thomas, who has come a long way since I taught him in his first year at Portsmouth. As you might guess from his choice of topics, Elliott has his sights set on a career in the foreign office! On 4 May 1978, at the refugee camp of Cassinga, in Southern Angola, Namibian refugees ran out to greet the planes they thought were sending supplies gathered by Sam Nujoma (the president of the Southwest Africa People’s Organisation, SWAPO).[1] Instead of supplies however, they were greeted by an astronomical amount of explosive ordinance, delivered by the South African Airforce, a total […]

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