Under the terms of its "safe return" policy for nationalist guerillas who are prepared to support the internal settlement, the Smith regime appears to have issued a carte blanche for lawless and violent action on the part of selected groups of Africans. Recent developments in the interim administration's "ceasefire" programme in fact imply an intensification rather than a reduction of conflict — and that this is a deliberate strategy on the part of the regime.
"Several hundred" guerillas are now alleged to have responded to calls to switch their loyalties to the internal settlement. According to a statement issued by the Executive Council on 16 August, however, these forces are not simply being invited to "abandon acts of terrorism", but are required to "concentrate their energies against the forces of the Patriotic Front", as the "true enemies of the State, because they are now fighting not for majority rule but for personal power" — i.e. they are expected to carry on fighting on the regime's side. As such the situation can in no sense be described as a "ceasefire".
The Executive Council's statement continues that those guerillas who have responded are now regarded as "auxiliaries" to the security forces and are permitted to continue guerilla acts "under the command and control" of the regular police and army. They are "an extension of existing authority" and are "helping the district commissioners" in the administration of the areas concerned (described as widely spread over the country), and the police in the maintenance of law and order. Some guerillas have allegedly already been successfully involved in battles with Patriotic Front forces. Further details of the programme were given by Mr. Roger Hawkins, the Rhodesian Front Joint Minister of Defence, in a statement to the House of Assembly intended to allay alarm and confusion caused among whites by a television film showing Bishop Muzorewa meeting heavily armed guerillas in the Msana TTL 30 miles north-east of Salisbury. The guerillas led by one "Comrade Max", claimed to be loyal to Bishop Muzorewa's UANC and to have taken over the office and functions of the district commissioner in the area.
While the regime claims that the "auxiliaries" are former supporters of the Patriotic Front, they are widely believed inside Zimbabwe to be members of the Selous Scouts or "private armies" recruited by Bishop Muzorewa, Rev. Sithole and Chief Chirau from among their own followers or simply the unemployed youths now present in the townships in large numbers. A number of African MPs have asked the regime to explain why the "auxiliaries" are not being fully integrated into the Rhodesian security forces as provided for under the terms of the internal settlement agreement, but are apparently being allowed to operate as separate entities owing allegiance to a single individual rather than the interim government as a whole and behaving in a reprehensible fashion. Mr. M. Bhebe, MP for Ntshonalanga, warned the House of Assembly that "this is the beginning of civil war in Rhodesia — take it from me, some parts of my constituency have been already invaded by the so-called guerillas and the constituents have no comfort at all. The so-called guerillas are as terrorism [sic] and worse than the terrorists on the civilian black population".
Mr. W. Chimpaka, MP for Nemakonde, claimed that the black members of the Executive Council had been permitted to establish "private barracks" whose occupants were little better than armed gangsters who had been "roaming round the country threatening people to join their various parties". Mr. T. Zawaira, MP for Kunyasi, alleged that the regular Rhodesian army deliberately kept out of the areas being patrolled by "private armies" - these he identified as Gwelo, Wha Wha, Sinoia and Belingwe. (Chief Chirau, leader of ZUPO, has his headquarters in the Zimba TTI TTL 50 km southwest of Sinoia, while armed bands owing allegiance to Rev. Sithole have been alleged to be also operating near Gokwe and in the Copper Queen Purchase Area, further to the west). According to ZAPU (Patriotic Front), three new training camps for forces loyal to Bishop Muzorewa and Rev. Sithole have been set up at Shabani, Gwelo and Chirundu, totalling 4,000 men. In a communique broadcast on 23 August, ZANU (Patriotic Front) stated that a farm at Rupisi in the Chipinga area, where forces loyal to Rev. Sithole were being trained, had been attacked by ZIPA forces at the end of June. Allegations about the existence of such training camps were in fact made by the Patriotic Front before the internal settlement agreement was signed. There have also been rumours of training programmes in South Africa.
In a detailed analysis of the workings of the internal settlement agreement was signed. There Commission for Justice and Peace in Rhodesia have stated that: "The suffering of the Black Rural population is made worse by gangs of armed bandits who are difficult to identify and who cannot be related directly to either the Security Forces or the guerillas; they terrorise the people with exorbitant demands for money and assassination threats if those demands are not met promptly. It has been suggested that certain of these groups operate to exploit inter-faction rivalries between political parties presently active in Rhodesia. In the absence of an early settlement the activities of such groups might contribute to chaos and the eventual breakdown of law and order".
