Smith, Ian Douglas

Smith, Ian Douglas, 1919–, Rhodesian political leader. He served in the Southern Rhodesia legislative assembly from 1948 until 1953, when he was elected to the federal parliament of the Central African Federation, where he served until 1961. He helped establish the white supremacist Rhodesian Front (RF) party that favored independence for Southern Rhodesia from Britain. In Dec., 1962, shortly before the breakup of the Federation, the RF won in Southern Rhodesia elevating Smith to deputy prime minister and minister of the treasury. Becoming prime minister of Rhodesia (1964), he brutally suppressed black nationalist activities. Refusing to agree with Britain on eventual African majority rule, Smith unilaterally declared (Nov., 1965) Rhodesian independence. Despite international economic sanctions against Rhodesia, Smith consolidated white rule and declared Rhodesia a republic in 1970. His government won elections overwhelmingly in 1970 and 1974, but, with Mozambique's independence, guerrilla war intensified. In 1977 Smith negotiated a settlement for black majority rule in which power was shared with whites, and the country was renamed Zimbabwe-Rhodesia. The excluded Patriotic Front continued fighting. In 1979 the Zimbabwe-Rhodesian government was forced to negotiate with the Patriotic Front and under a new constitution (1980) Robert Mugabe, one of its leaders, won election as prime minister of independent Zimbabwe. Smith was relegated to leader of the opposition. His party has disintegrated since. He retired in 1988.