Rhodesian passport

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Rhodesian passport
Rhodesia Passport.jpg
Type Passport
Issued byFlag of Rhodesia (1968-1979).svg Rhodesia
First issued1965
Eligibility Rhodesian citizenship

Rhodesian passports were passports issued by the government of Rhodesia to its citizens for purposes of international travel. They are no longer issued, having been superseded by Zimbabwean passports in 1980, with the country's reconstitution and renaming as Zimbabwe. Rhodesian passports were ostensibly valid for travel by Rhodesians anywhere in the world, but in practice they were accepted by very few countries.

Contents

Following Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence from Britain on 11 November 1965, Rhodesia's predominantly white minority government was unrecognised, causing the legality of its passports to become ambiguous. From 1968, United Nations Security Council Resolution 253 called on all UN member states to refuse entry to Rhodesian passport holders. The passports continued to be accepted by some non-UN countries, such as Switzerland, as well as a few UN members, including Portugal and South Africa, but they were not recognised as legal by most foreign powers. For example, when Rhodesian politicians travelled to the United States on official business during the 1970s, they were issued visas on separate pieces of paper, their passports unstamped.

The dispute surrounding the passports made it difficult for many Rhodesians to travel overseas, and also affected Rhodesia's entry into international sports competitions, such as the Olympic Games, the FIFA World Cup, and the Davis Cup. Because a Rhodesian passport was of little use in practice, many Rhodesian citizens obtained documents issued by other governments, most commonly British passports, which according to a 1978 report from the International Committee of the Red Cross were held by over two-thirds of the country's white population.

When the country was reorganised under black majority rule in June 1979 as Zimbabwe Rhodesia, its passports were renamed appropriately. Following the Lancaster House Agreement of December 1979, and the imposition of temporary British rule, applications for Zimbabwe Rhodesian passports trebled; Zambia announced in March 1980 that it would start accepting Zimbabwe Rhodesian travellers. These passports continued to be issued for a few months following the recognised independence of Zimbabwe in 1980, stopping only when stocks were exhausted. Since then, Zimbabwean passports have been issued and used by the country's citizens.

Acceptance

Following Rhodesia's 1965 Unilateral Declaration of Independence from Britain, which went unrecognised by the international community, the breakaway state's passport holders faced various difficulties in overseas travel. United Nations Security Council Resolution 253 (passed in 1968) called upon all United Nations members to refuse entry to persons holding passports issued by "the illegal régime in Southern Rhodesia". [1] However, Portugal (a UN member) as well as Switzerland and South Africa (both non-UN members at the time) accepted Rhodesian passports for travel. There were exceptions for "study and compassionate reasons" as well. [2] The United Kingdom and the United States occasionally permitted entry to Rhodesian passport holders, particularly blacks. [3]

There were a number of instances of refusal of admission to Rhodesian passport holders over the years. The United Kingdom routinely refused admission. In one case in 1969, the Rhodesian government accused the British Home Office of detaining a Rhodesian man, Henry Ncube for three days while he transited in the United Kingdom on the way from the United States due to his refusal to apply for a British passport; Ncube was ill at the time, and reportedly did not want to apply for a British passport because he feared it could bring him trouble with Rhodesian authorities upon his return to the country. [4] Though it was initially speculated that Australia might adopt an unofficial policy of leniency towards Rhodesian passport holders, [5] in fact Australia also routinely refused admission to Rhodesian passport holders. However, some Rhodesians were able to proceed to Australia as migrants, for example 170 such persons in 1977. [6]

Impact

The Rhodesian Olympic team was barred from participating in the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico. The refusals applied equally to black and white holders of Rhodesian passports. [7] In September 1969, South Korea refused admission to the mostly black Rhodesian national football team, [2] [8] which had been billed to contest a FIFA World Cup qualifying tournament there for nearly a year. The Korean government refused to budge on this, but FIFA was adamant that Rhodesia should play; a compromise was eventually worked out whereby the winner of the series would play Rhodesia in a "neutral" country that would admit the Rhodesians. [9]

The winning team from the Korean series, Australia, ultimately took on and defeated Rhodesia in Lourenço Marques, Portuguese Mozambique over three games in November 1969. [10] Attitudes towards Rhodesia's participation in the Davis Cup international tennis tournament were varied; having first entered in 1963, it was allowed to play up to and including 1970. [11] Following five years of absence afterwards, it returned for two years during the late 1970s, taking part in the 1975 and 1976 competitions, but thereafter did not play again under the Rhodesian name, [12] returning in 1981 as Zimbabwe. [13]

Alternative documents

Rhodesian passport holders who needed to travel to other countries often ended up applying for other travel documents, including passports issued by other governments. One widely noted case involved Air Vice-Marshal Harold Hawkins, the commander of the Royal Rhodesian Air Force, who had emigrated to Rhodesia from Australia in 1946. To circumvent the logistical issues associated with his Rhodesian citizenship he successfully reapplied for an Australian passport in 1968. [14] Many others resorted to Garry Davis' World Passport, a legally ambiguous document which few authorities recognised. [15] In 1978, as the Rhodesian Bush War intensified, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) estimated that 260,000 white Rhodesians had British passports, while only 100,000 had Rhodesian passports; the ICRC was making preparations to issue laissez-passers to the latter if they needed to leave the country at the end of the war. [16]

Rhodesian officials were sometimes issued single-sheet travel letters to facilitate their entry into or exit from countries applying sanctions, for the purposes of negotiations. When Frederick Crawford went to London to discuss Rhodesia's ban from the 1968 Olympics, his British passport was seized and he departed the country on an emergency travel letter; he then declared his intention to apply for a Rhodesian passport if his British passport was not returned. [7] Similarly, the United States Carter administration's Department of State issued visas to Prime Minister Ian Smith and his ministers on separate pieces of paper rather than stamping their Rhodesian passports, which the U.S. regarded as illegal. [17]

Transitional passports

When Rhodesia was reconstituted under black majority rule as Zimbabwe Rhodesia in June 1979, following the Internal Settlement the previous year, the passports its government issued were altered appropriately. However, the new administration failed to gain international acceptance. With the Lancaster House Agreement of December 1979, the Bush War formally ended and the country was placed under the temporary control of Britain while fresh elections were organised and held, after which recognised independence would be granted, with the country's name shortened to Zimbabwe. Passports continued to be issued during this interim period, and were first accepted by Zambia in March 1980; around this time the number of Zimbabwe Rhodesian passport applications trebled. Following the independence of Zimbabwe in April 1980, Zimbabwean passports came into use, though the old documents continued to be issued until stocks were exhausted. [18]

Camouflage passports

More recently, a market has developed on the internet for "camouflage passports", false documents intended to mask a traveller's true nationality. These "passports" look largely genuine, but purport to be issued by country that no longer exists, or which has changed its name. The theory is that such a document could provide cover for a traveller whose genuine passport could cause him to be targeted by terrorists. Camouflage passports often claim to be Rhodesian. [19] Though these documents hold no authenticity, Mark B. Salter writes that they are sometimes carried by members of the United States Armed Forces "when off duty in 'difficult' countries". [20]

Related Research Articles

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Rhodesia, officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the de facto successor state to the British colony of Southern Rhodesia, which had been self-governing since achieving responsible government in 1923. A landlocked nation, Rhodesia was bordered by South Africa to the south, Bechuanaland to the southwest, Zambia to the northwest, and Mozambique to the east. From 1965 to 1979, Rhodesia was one of two independent states on the African continent governed by a white minority of European descent and culture, the other being South Africa.

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Ian Douglas Smith was a Rhodesian politician, farmer, and fighter pilot who served as Prime Minister of Rhodesia from 1964 to 1979. He was the country's first premier not born abroad, and led the predominantly white government that unilaterally declared independence from the United Kingdom in November 1965 following prolonged dispute over the terms, particularly British demands for black majority rule. He remained Prime Minister for almost all of the 14 years of international isolation that followed, and oversaw Rhodesia's security forces during most of the Bush War, which pitted the unrecognised white administration against communist-backed black nationalist guerrilla movements. Smith, who has been described as personifying white Rhodesia, remains a highly controversial figure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern Rhodesia</span> British colony from 1923 to 1964 and from 1979 to 1980

Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked self-governing British Crown colony in southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally known as south Zambesia until annexed by Britain at the behest of Cecil Rhodes's British South Africa Company, for whom the colony was named. The bounding territories were Bechuanaland (Botswana), Northern Rhodesia (Zambia), Moçambique (Mozambique), and the Transvaal Republic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence</span> 1965 statement on independence from the UK

Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) was a statement adopted by the Cabinet of Rhodesia on 11 November 1965, announcing that Southern Rhodesia or simply Rhodesia, a British territory in southern Africa that had governed itself since 1923, now regarded itself as an independent sovereign state. The culmination of a protracted dispute between the British and Rhodesian governments regarding the terms under which the latter could become fully independent, it was the first unilateral break from the United Kingdom by one of its colonies since the United States Declaration of Independence in 1776. The UK, the Commonwealth and the United Nations all deemed Rhodesia's UDI illegal, and economic sanctions, the first in the UN's history, were imposed on the breakaway colony. Amid near-complete international isolation, Rhodesia continued as an unrecognised state with the assistance of South Africa and Portugal.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Internal Settlement</span> 1978 agreement in Rhodesia

The Internal Settlement was an agreement which was signed on 3 March 1978 between Prime Minister of Rhodesia Ian Smith and the moderate African nationalist leaders comprising Bishop Abel Muzorewa, Ndabaningi Sithole and Senator Chief Jeremiah Chirau. After almost 15 years of the Rhodesian Bush War, and under pressure from the sanctions placed on Rhodesia by the international community, and political pressure from South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States, the Rhodesian government met with some of the internally based moderate African nationalist leaders in order to reach an agreement on the political future for the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Rhodesia (1965–1979)</span>

The history of Rhodesia from 1965 to 1979 covers Rhodesia's time as a state unrecognised by the international community following the predominantly white minority government's Unilateral Declaration of Independence on 11 November 1965. Headed by Prime Minister Ian Smith, the Rhodesian Front remained in government until 1 June 1979, when the country was reconstituted as Zimbabwe Rhodesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1969 Rhodesian constitutional referendum</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australia–Zimbabwe relations</span> Bilateral relations

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Southern Rhodesia</span> Flag of a British colony

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harold Hawkins (Rhodesia)</span> Australian air force officer in Rhodesia

Air Vice-Marshal Harold Hawkins was an Australian-born air force officer and diplomat. He served in the Royal Australian Air Force between 1941 and 1945. He enlisted in what became the Royal Rhodesian Air Force in 1947, and was its commander from 1965 to 1969. Hawkins subsequently became the Rhodesian Accredited Diplomatic Representative to South Africa until 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zimbabwean nationality law</span>

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References

  1. ↑ "Resolution 253". United Nations High Commission for Refugees. 29 May 1968. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  2. 1 2 Nyoka, Justin (17 January 1970). "Rhodesians face travel problems". The Afro American. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  3. ↑ "Britain Denies Smith Stopover in London". Lakeland Ledger. 1 October 1978. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  4. ↑ "Rhodesian's passport trouble in London". The Herald. Glasgow. 6 November 1969. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  5. ↑ Tidey, John (30 July 1968). "Diplomacy poser on Rhodesia sanctions". The Age. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  6. ↑ "Rhodesian migrants allowed in". The Age. 20 April 1977. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  7. 1 2 "Mexican Olympics statement shocks Rhodesians". The Herald. Glasgow. 8 June 1968. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  8. ↑ "Mixed team for Rhodesia". The Age. Melbourne. 7 November 1969. p. 29. Retrieved 25 January 2012.
  9. ↑ "Two-Phase Cup round proposed". The Age. Melbourne. 22 September 1969. p. 26. Retrieved 25 January 2012.
  10. ↑ "Soccer win – at last". The Age . Melbourne. 1 December 1969. p. 24. Retrieved 2 February 2012.
  11. ↑ Tupper, Fred (24 March 1970). "South Africa Banned From Davis Cup; Rhodesia Allowed to Play". The New York Times . p. 1. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  12. ↑ "Rhodesia". daviscup.com. International Tennis Federation . Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  13. ↑ "Zimbabwe". daviscup.com. International Tennis Federation . Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  14. ↑ Tidey, John (21 August 1968). "Passport may be of little use". The Age. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  15. ↑ "U.S. Native advocates borderless world". The Southeast Missourian. 27 August 1975. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  16. ↑ "Red Cross prepares to assist 100,000 Rhodesian whites flee". The Modesto Bee. 14 November 1978. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  17. ↑ "US opens door for Smith talks". The Age. 6 November 1978. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  18. ↑ Sub-Saharan Africa report: Issues 2228–2232. Rosslyn, Virginia: Foreign Broadcast Information Service. 1980. pp. 2, 91.
  19. ↑ Brantingham, Barney (27 March 2007). "The Camouflaged Passport Advantage: How Getting a Fake Passport Just Might Save Your Life". Santa Barbara Independent. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  20. ↑ Salter, Mark B. (2003). Rights of Passage: The Passport in International Relations. Boulder, Colorado & London: Lynne Rienner Publishers. p. 36. ISBN   9781588261458.
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