Southern Rhodesia African National Congress


Southern Rhodesia African National Congress
AbbreviationSRANC
ANC
FounderJoshua Nkomo
James Chikerema
Founded12 September 1957
Dissolved1959
Merger ofCity Youth League
Bulawayo-based ANC
Succeeded byNational Democratic Party
IdeologyAnti-racism
Nonviolent resistance (initially)
Anti-segregationism
Anti-colonialism
Socialism
Progressivism
Black nationalism
Pan-africanism
Political positionLeft-wing

The Southern Rhodesia African National Congress (SRANC) was a political party active between 1957–1959 in Southern Rhodesia (now modern-day Zimbabwe). Committed to the promotion of indigenous African welfare, it was the first fully fledged black nationalist organisation in the country. While short-lived — it was outlawed by the predominantly white minority government in 1959 — it marked the beginning of political action towards black majority rule in Southern Rhodesia, and was the original incarnation of the National Democratic Party (NDP); the Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU); the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU); and the Zimbabwe African National Union — Patriotic Front (ZANU–PF), which has governed Zimbabwe continuously since 1980. Many political figures who later became prominent, including Robert Mugabe and Joshua Nkomo, were members of the SRANC.[1]

  1. ^ "Robert Gabriel Mugabe" Who's Who: Southern Africa. 2010. WhosWho.co.za. 1 December 2010 [1]