ABSTRACT
This is essentially a study in decolonization. Analytically, I approach the subject as a contlict resolution process. From this perspective 1974 was chosen as a point of departure because, following the decolonization of the Portuguese colonial empire, the uniqueness of the decolonization of Rhodesia became more apparent and the conflict began to realize its full potential. In order to capture the essential dimensions of the conflict resolution process and its dynamic qualities, I have employed three analytical concepts: (1) The goals' continuum; (2) The strategic options' continuum; (3) The interaction within and between the three levels of the conflict system. The concept of a continuum is being used because it facilitates capturing the dynamic quality of the conflict resolution process. Political phenomena, especially in such a context, are anything but static. Inherent in the continuum concept is the notion of a movement between its poles. Locating the different participants in the contlict resolution process on either continuum is vital to the understanding of the essence and evolution of the process. The interaction within the contlict system, which reflected the input of the different actors involved, provided the impetus, which in tum accounted for the intensity and the course of the process.
