The Sunday Mail
We continue narrating the political life of Cde Christopher Mawomberere (CM). This week the former freedom fighter chronicles to our reporter Norman Muchemwa (NM) his experiences at the war front.
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NM: Can you take us through your journey crossing into Rhodesia?
CM: We didn’t face many challenges crossing into the country. This was despite the situation where, from Nyamukwarara into Ruda area, the places were under the control of Rhodesian soldiers.
It was a bid to stop the masses from helping comrades coming to the war front.
We walked until we arrived in Nyanga around Selbourne area where new reserves had been created.
During our journey to Nyanga, we survived on very little food that we had carried with us from Mozambique.
We also ate wild fruits since there were no villagers to assist us.
Our advantage was that our route was through mountains, so it was easy to evade the enemy.
NM: You said your group numbered about 150 comrades, how did you manage to evade any detection by the Rhodesian authorities?
CM: We travelled during the night, taking advantage of darkness. At night we would move together as one unit and in the morning disperse into smaller groups of between 15 and 20 comrades and find places to hide and rest.
Each group had its section commander, section political commissar and section security. These leaders would map our journey.
In addition to this group of 150, we were joined by another section that was familiar with the territory since they had come to the war front before us; they were the ones leading the way. We had a mission and it was our destiny to face whatever came in our way.
Takawirirana kuti kana dzarira pfuti chinenge chatotsva and there was no going back. From Nyanga we camped at St Barnabas in Makoni for some days.
Our final destination was supposed to be Wedza where we were going to open a new operational front. We moved from Makoni and reached Mutenure area around Nyazura farming area.
NM: This was indeed a long journey of a big group, Comrade, and you maintain there was not any single confrontation with the Rhodesian security agents?
CM: At that time we had no confrontation with the enemy. I don’t know how that was possible, but we did not face any confrontation. When we crossed into Nyazura, we came across a police camp and we avoided it by passing through westwards. In this instance I am quite sure there are some police officers, on guard, who saw us, but for strange reasons, they did not take action. Maybe they were stunned by the large number of comrades.
I say they saw us because there was a time we heard some whistles among them, as a code, but no shot was fired.
It was around dawn when we passed through that police camp. We walked and camped at Ruwombwe Mountain around Chiduku area in Rusape.
The welfare situation, in terms of food supply and other logistics, had improved since we were out of controlled areas. War collaborators would organise our food as well as relay information. During our brief stint there, we were informed by some collaborators that there were soldiers coming our way.
NM: After receiving information that the enemy was in pursuit, what did you do?
CM: The whole group was alerted on the information and we took various positions ready for battle. Within a few minutes we noticed a cloud of dust coming from the direction we had been told the Rhodesian soldiers were approaching from. The soldiers drew closer and from our positions, in the mountain, we could see them as we awaited instructions from our leaders. But surprisingly the troop, that also had 15 to 20 soldiers on horseback, came to a halt.
After a few minutes they turned around and retreated. As per instruction, we could only fire our guns when necessary and the situation at the time did not warrant us to do so.
Sema comrades tainge tisisina kugadzikana because taitoda kuti chichitsva, but the overall commander decided otherwise. We immediately left the mountain and walked until we crossed Mucheke River, into Muzani before reaching Makarara. We were now in the Wedza area. We went to a base rainzi paChibaya. That is where comrades were to be assigned to various sections. It was still in the morning and as we settled down, two war collaborators came to inform our leaders that there were some white soldiers in the area.
I believe they had tracked our group.
All along I was itching to fire my gun. We were immediately grouped to take various positions. There were some war collaborators who were also at the camp, and these were ordered to return to their homes. The camp was well equipped with war material and I was confident even if the Rhodesians dispatched war planes we could put up a strong resistance.
We had bazookas and several anti-air missiles. There were some agriculture fields at the periphery of the base from where we had taken battle positions; we heard a soldier ask an old lady, who had been tending her field, if she had seen any comrades in the area. The old lady’s answer was negative and she was ordered to leave the field.
The same soldier called his colleague by the name Gideon; and they began to converse. As they spoke, we were ordered to fire at them. This was a rare experience for me because I had waited long for the moment to fire my AK47.
This was my first chance to revenge my comrades who were massacred at Nyadzonia by the group led by Morrison Nyathi. Those two soldiers were the most visible vakaita kudamburwa nemabara because we fired from different angles. The group of Rhodesian soldiers had about 20 soldiers, but some of them were not visible. They tried to fire back, but we overwhelmed them and they retreated.
The incident gave me courage and the urge to continue with the struggle for freedom. We left the base to camp at a nearby mountain because we knew the Rhodesians would call for back-up.
Moments later we saw from our hiding place two helicopters that hovered on top of our base and left.
Takazonzwa nana mujibha kuti they had seen the soldiers carrying some bodies of their colleagues.
Pese pataisvika taisvikocherera makasha emabara pasi because munhu nemunhu aifamba nemakasha ake anenge aine more than 1 000 bullets.
Taiti kana mabara apera ndipo pataizouya tichifukunura.
NM: Can you take us through your journey from this base deep into the operational zone?
CM: We left the base and went to another one rainzi kwaMusanhu. The villagers received news that a large group had arrived in the area and they slaughtered a cow for us.
Takaswera hedu takazorora tichidya nekumwa hwahwa. Kwasviba, takabva tichienda kurimwe base mukati meWedza painzi paZvivambire.
This was one of the largest bases in the area and that is when we met senior commanders in the area who were at detachment level. Our fight was a guerrilla warfare. It was a hit-and-run war. Taiti tikaita ambush or surprise attack tobva zvekuti hataiziva kuti takuvadza kana kuuraya mhandu ngani.
NM: Who were some of these commanders you met at paZvivambire?
CM: We met Cde Mike Nyambuya, who was the detachment commander of our operational zone. He is now a retired senior army officer and Deputy President of the Senate. He was in the company of Cdes Tawanda, Cde Nyikayaramba, not Douglas, and Cde Midzi. They were all members of the detachment.
They gathered us at a parade and addressed us that we were now in their operational area. They regrouped us into various new sections that we were going to operate under.
They informed us that the area was a hotspot and a target of the Rhodesian soldiers and we had to be vigilant.
Cde Nyambuya told us of one white soldier ainzi Madrum who was terrorising the comrades in the area.
Uyu Madrum ainzi aiita zvechivanhu and aitofamba akapfeka machira emudzimu apa iye ari murungu.
He was later killed by another section of comrades.
That was after their convoy was ambushed and completely destroyed by the comrades, midzimu yenyika yakaramba kusvibiswa nemupuruvheya.
NM: You mentioned that you were grouped into new sections, which section did you join and who were the other comrades?
CM: I was incorporated into a section that was already operating in the area.
I remember the commander was Cde Cephas Pfidze, political commissar was Cde Felix Magamba and security was Cde Biggy Sachipinge. We worked like that for some time and we would, at times, join forces with another section led by Cde Taurai Makarudo.
Our operation area reached Zviyambe where we opened another base.
We then moved to an area kwainzi kwaMakarara in Dorowa. We were recalled to Wedza and reassigned to operate in Enkeldoorn, now Chivhu.
Our section was the first to operate in Enkeldoorn. At that time we had joined another group that was led by Cde Chaka Masango.
This is the group randakapinda naro muEnkeldoorn around April, 1978.
Continued next week
