1960s in Zimbabwe

Iain Peter Butchart, a cricketer, was born in Bulawayo on May 9, 1960. Broadcasting of television started in November. The Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU) was formed in 1961 with Joshua Nkomo as leader. The Rhodesian Front won the general elections of 1962 on December 14. Winston Field then became the Prime Minister of Rhodesia. The Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) was formed in 1963 with Robert Mugabe as Secretary. The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland was dissolved on December 31, 1963 as Zambia and Malawi moved towards independence. The government placed Joshua Nkomo, leader and founder of the Zimbabwe African Peoples Union, under restriction on April 16, 1964. Northern Rhodesia gained its independence and Southern Rhodesia became the colony of Rhodesia on October 24.

1965

Ian Smith unilaterally declared the independence (UDI) of Rhodesia from the United Kingdom on November 11, 1965. The Rhodesian government then established a new constitution. Harold Wilson, the British Prime Minister, declared the UDI illegal and an act of rebellion on November 12. The United Nations Security Council declared the UDI illegal on November 19, calling on Britain to end the rebellion. The British government suspended the Governor and Directors of Reserve Bank of Rhodesia and freezed Rhodesian reserves in Britain on December 3. Britain imposed total economic sanctions against Rhodesia on December 12. Harold Wilson, the British Prime Minister, appealed to the United Nations for support to end the Rhodesian rebellion on December 16. The British government declared an oil embargo against Rhodesia on December 17.

1966 to 1967

The United Nations Security Council agreed that the United Kingdom should use force to prevent oil from reaching Rhodesia via Beira, Mozambique on April 10, 1966. Ian Smith, the Rhodesian Prime Minister, and Harold Wilson, the British Prime Minister, met on December 2, 1966 on HMS Tiger to discuss the possibility of a settlement. The United Nations voted for selected mandatory sanctions, including oil, against Rhodesia on December 16. Zimbabwe African People's Union and the South African African National Congress formed an alliance in January 1967 for armed struggle against Rhodesia and South Africa. Cuthbert Alport, Baron Alport and former High Commissioner to Central African Federation, visited Rhodesia on June 14 to discover whether the stalemate could be broken.

1968 to 1969

In 1968 the YMCA opened and the Gonarezhou National Park was decared. The United Nations Security Council approved comprehensive mandatory sanctions against Rhodesia through Resolution 253 on May 29. Ian Smith, the Rhodesian Prime Minister, and Harold Wilson, the British Prime Minister, met on HMS Fearless for talks from October 10-13. George Thomson, the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs and Maurice Foley, British Under-Secretary of State, visited Rhodesia for talks on November 2. The talks ended in deadlock. George Thomson and Maurice Foley met with detained activists, Joshua Nkomo of the Zimbabwe African People's Union and Ndabaningi Sithole, founder of the Zimbabwe African National Union, on November 7. Ebrahim Essop-Adam, a cricket player, was born in Harare on November 16. The government held a referendum on a new Constitution and Republican status on June 20, 1969. Humphrey Gibbs resigned as Governor of Rhodesia on June 24. The British Residual Mission in Salisbury, and Rhodesia House in London, both closed on July 14.