We were first largest Zanla contingent to be trained

CDE TAYLOR GWIRAMBIRA, whose nom de guerre was ELIAS CHIMURENGA, continues chronicling to our Features and Arts Editor PRINCE MUSHAWEVATO his experiences during the liberation struggle. He shares how the Rhodesian army failed to ambush their group on their way to Mozambique after training in East Africa. He also recounts his first experiences at the war front.

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Q: Last week, we ended our discussion when you were marching from Doroi to Gondola. How big was your group and what happened next?

A: The journey was arduous. One had to be exceptionally fit to endure the long walk. When we reached Gondola, we boarded a train to Dondo, a camaradas’ camp near the airport.

I am not sure about the exact number of people who were part of the journey. However, in total, there were approximately 5 000, including 500 women, when we arrived in Beira.

We stayed at the Beira Airport for a while because we could not immediately connect to Tanzania for training.

The delays were caused by intelligence indicating that the enemy had replicated the aircraft used to transport comrades from the Beira Airport to East Africa.

They planned to capture comrades in Mozambique.

It took time to tighten security.

I do not know how they managed to overcome this challenge, but we eventually travelled and landed in East Africa, at the Mtwara Airport.

From there, we moved to Nachingwea towards the end of 1976 and began our training.

Q: Can you take us through the training camp setup in East Africa?

A: The overall camp commander was Cde Gwauya. ZANLA had its own instructors, as did the Tanzanian and Chinese defence forces.

We underwent training in phases.

ZANLA instructors taught us guerrilla warfare, Tanzanian forces focused on regular military training, while the Chinese trainers specialised in other fields.

We successfully completed all the drills and passed with distinction.

Our company was one of the best.

Cde Joshua Nkomo officiated at the passing-out ceremony.

He represented the ZIPRA/ZANLA initiative.

Cde Simon Muzenda and the then-Tanzanian deputy president, (Aboud) Jumbe, were also present.

These senior comrades and many others were part of this historic event, as it was the first time ZANLA had managed to train so many comrades at once.

After training, we were scheduled to return to Mozambique for deployment into Rhodesia.

However, we received intelligence indicating that one of the Tanzanian defence forces officers who had trained us was a sellout, who was working as a spy for West Germany.

Q: You can carry on.

A: He was leaking information about our training programme and travel plans to Mozambique after training.

Consequently, the enemy had set up an ambush for us at sea.

When we were about to depart, there was no ship present.

We were then informed that some South African submarines had been captured at sea.

They intended to sink the ship (Mapinduzi) that transported many comrades back to Mozambique.

This delayed our travel plans and we ended up continuing our training, specialising in various aspects of the war.

Chinese instructors guided us through the drills.

Later, we obtained airplanes from Nigerian Airlines that transported us from the Mtwara Airport to the Quelimane Airport in northern Mozambique.

Later on, we received information that when the Rhodesians attacked Chimoio, they believed they were attacking our group.

They assumed we would be at the headquarters for deployment, which was not the case.

When we returned to Mozambique from East Africa, our group was so huge that we could not stay for long at the camaradas’ camp in the town, close to the airport.

We had to be transferred to a neighbouring farm called Nasiyai.

We were later transported by trucks within Mozambique and subsequently transferred to Mavonde.

Q: Was this deployment and what was your feeling at that moment?

A: Yes, it was deployment.

We were deployed to the Tangwena sector as a group of 250 fighters.

Our placement was based on the geographical size of the area and the intensity of battles in the regions we were to operate in.

It was my first time at the front as a fighter and my mind was racing.

Meanwhile, (Ian) Smith was prepared for us since information had long leaked about a large group of freedom fighters set for deployment.  The groups moved from Mavonde inwards.

We passed through Makoni.

That is where I had my first battle with the enemy and made my first kill.

I was in Nyakuima village and there was a powerful spirit medium named Sakureba (Mhepo Yehondo).

There was a rule that every comrade entering the area had to pass through his home.

He was highly respected and his home was considered untouchable.

I remember some of the guys in our unit refusing to take instructions from him because they considered him a civilian.

But we were persuaded and surrendered our guns.

We entered his homestead and witnessed many supernatural powers at play.

Afterwards, we were deployed to Makoni because we had been instructed to delay crossing Mutare Road into Chiduku.

There was also a directive for us not to enter the mountains as the Rhodesian fighters had essentially camped there.

When our food was being prepared by the public, we were told to do so at night and stay in a designated area where no one was allowed in or out.

Our food was prepared according to instructions, and we went to a farm that served as our base.

A base was determined by factors such as the terrain, the number of trees and hills in the area and the chances of surviving an attack with minimal casualties.

You should not die in a war; you must only kill.

So, with the help of our experienced comrades, we identified a place that met our criterion.

Q: Can you describe the incident in which you had your first war casualty?

A: During that time, it was unusual to encounter a black soldier.

You would often find only one black soldier in a group of white fighters, whose duties were to interpret and interact with the public as they moved around.

As we were on patrol, we saw a group of soldiers conducting a mop-up operation and we dispersed.

A few of us, five to be precise, retreated to Nyatande River.

There was a large rock surface (ruware), and we hid there.

As the sun set, a deer ran past and stopped briefly near our hiding spot before continuing in another direction.

We had been instructed that if you encounter a wild animal, following its direction can increase your chances of survival.

Guerrilla warfare forces you to become part of nature, as you spend most of your time in the bush.

After the deer left, two Rhodesian army sniffer dogs approached our hiding spot.

We froze! We could not shoot the dogs before identifying their owners.

Moreover, our lower ground position was a natural disadvantage in warfare.

We remained calm, observing the dogs’ next move.

The dogs barked continuously and then turned and charged towards higher ground.

Moments later, some towering white soldiers emerged.

I had never seen such big people in my life.

They approached our hiding spot and called their colleague, a sergeant, who seemed to be their commander.

He responded and drew closer to them.

Q: What was happening?

A: They were so close to us that we could see the colour of their eyes, yet they did not spot us.

When the sergeant arrived, they began debating the best location to set up camp for the night.

Throughout this, they remained oblivious of our presence.

A black soldier in their company advised them against camping in the area, warning them that it was known to be infested with terrorists.

They often heeded such advice without argument.

As they were about to leave, we opened fire on them, killing all of them, including their dogs.

That was my first real battle experience — killing a white man at point-blank range.

After the attack, we marched in the direction the deer had taken.

Later, we reunited with our other colleagues and received a message instructing us to report to the main base.

Our commanders wanted to address us and provide guidance on the next steps in the battle.

The spirit medium I mentioned was truly remarkable.

He seemed to be in multiple places at once, with everyone having conversations with him in different locations.

He gave us the greenlight to cross Mutare Road on our way to Rukweza.

The Rhodesian soldiers attempted to track us down the following day with the aid of dogs and horses, but they were unsuccessful.

They only found footprints, as we were a large group of about 250 people.

However, we could observe their movements.

We continued our march from Rombwe to Mucheke, Nerwande, Goto and eventually arrived in Hwedza.

 Next week, Cde Gwirambira will share experiences of some of the operations he was involved in Hwedza, where he was based for a long time.