Lusitania
Donor
Oh it’s been approved. Now we may ask would US not be able to it is because they are not only stuck in the Vietnam quagmire but South and Central America America exploded during the 1960s. While South American situation is required to understand Africa context, Africa is the crucial continent for Portuguese and one they need to pacify or better control to guarantee their safety.A Portuguese intervention in South Africa looks set.
So the commonwealth intervention has collapsed, and SA / Rhodesia whites have decided to teach blacks a lesson and also reduce the potential for future trouble.
UN figures out the number of people evacuated from SA - United áreas at 1.5 million. This did not include the 1 million in Portuguese refugees. 1/3 of all whites in South Africa had left either living in Federation refugee camps or evacuated by UN / commonwealth. Canada did what it did best accommodate those fleeing and migrants. Taking in a massive 750,000 SA people with remaining going to US, Britain and Australia / New Zealand. Brazil accepted just 60,000 while Federation took in 25,000.
So now the world eyes turned its eyes to the Federation. While the agreement was not publicized there was growing speculation that the federation would take action. Just not known when.
Pressure within the Federation for the government to intervene was growing with marches and Portuguese legislature passing non-bidding motions for the Portuguese government to intervene.
Portuguese historian Alberto Costa published in 1985 a paper that while internationally authorization and support was important the Portuguese government could not afford to wait any longer and western world authorization occurred 1 day before operation Bartolomeu Dias was to commence.
The commonwealth countries, Britain, Canada, Indian countries, Australia and New Zealand never led the fight but supported the United SA government plus there were huge constraints on their deployment. Canadá through a lack of manpower resources and equipment, Britain through a reluctancy to fully support the operation as its Socialist government were at odds with Military who felt a SA nationalist government best suited you deal with communist. While Indian states (mainly DUI) lacked the technology and weapons while Australia was locked into Vietnam war and NewZealand lacked both manpower and weapons.Pink Map time!
edit: also, how did the Commonwealth do so poorly? they should have clear numeric, material, and technological superiority over the nationalist revolt.
So at best it was a lackluster attempt at supporting a government they not really trusted or beloved capable of winning but one they had to give an appearance to support because it was defending partial equality and more importantly commonwealth.
Also the United side lacked the strength and conviction with over 1/2 its forces African and many members sympathetic to communism and Africa for African dream.
The Nationalist side was fighting what it saw as right to live many we’re afraid of loosing since it would mean what they believed their property and lives.
Now as for your comments about pink map. The dreams of 19th century Portuguese but now too late. But what Portuguese had learned was that government in Guinea Boke snd Galicia Along with two in south East Asia had given the Portuguese with economic, political and military power. So maybe something if the same sort be in the works but first it not only needed to win against SA / Rhodesia but also the Pan African forces arrayed against it.
Not officially. Remember all countries were to be left alone that was the guarantee the Portuguese federation provided the west. Now if the new government prefers to be aligned to the federation all the best.Perhaps Portugal takes over Rhodesia when this is all over...
While at the time it was intervening communist forces were on the verge of loosing the problem for the government was internally it could not afford to be seems being complacent or supporting a nationalist win. Therefore with the federation just over 15 years old it needed to show it was in support of a multi ethnicity SA. Being prohibited by commonwealth and America from intervening in the SA civil war (a fact that was well publicized with Portuguese newspaper headlines “América e Britânica Ameaça Federação sobre intervenção na África do Sul.” America and Britain warn federation against intervening in SA.Isn't Portugal kind of having to intervene anyway from an amoral rationalist perspective, owing to the fact that it'd be highly problematic if a large Communist state bordered them on two fronts?
Therefore being “Threatened” by west to stay out the situation in SA has become a political nightmare to the US and British government that they were forced to “beg” Portuguese government to save the situation a fact that was exploited by both the American and british government critics saying after bungling SA crises was forced to beg for Portuguese assistance.
The Portuguese being “requested to save SA” was a huge boost to its international prestige and legitimacy. Now what will it do with all eyes on it. Note: even soviets were receptive to Federation intervening because it was viewed the best way to save Communists in SA.
Yes it did result in the placing a huge black eye on the commonwealth with Britain suffering the most humiliation but what happen after was even a greater strain on the organization as it struggled for over 2 decades to rehabilitate its name.Not going to lie, this whole debacle is going to make the British commonwealth look bad around the world...talk about a total cluster of a mess they left behind for Federation to clean up.