Rhodesia: Of Oil & Scotch

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At long last, the British economic sanctions against Premier Ian Smith's white renegade regime began to be felt last week. Not in Rhodesia, however. In Zambia.

No sooner had British Prime Minister Harold Wilson called for a worldwide oil embargo against Rhodesia than Smith retaliated by cutting off all petroleum shipments to his black-ruled northern neighbor. The effect in Zambia was immediate. Gas stations closed. Cars coughed to a stop and were abandoned. A stringent emergency rationing system allowed each car owner less than a gallon a week. To conserve fuel, government offices eliminated the lunch hour, sent their auto-driving employees home in the middle of the afternoon instead.

Committed to save Zambia's economy, Wilson ordered an airlift of oil from Dar es Salaam, and soon five R.A.F. Britannias began flying in from the Tanzania port. The U.S. and Canada announced that they would help out with an airlift of their own. The Great North Road, a part dirt, part asphalt strip that links Lusaka with the east coast at Mombasa and Dar es Salaam, groaned under the heavy loads of trucks.

The oil lift would not be easy, for there were slippery African sensitivities to be considered. Tanzania's President Julius Nyerere, who had broken off relations with Britain, demanded that the British use civilians instead of military personnel for the operation.

All the while, there was plenty of oil in Rhodesia. The refinery at Umtali, supplied by pipeline direct from the port of Beira in Portuguese Mozambique, had enough oil to supply the nation for ten weeks even if the pipeline was cut, and Smith last week airily advised Rhodesians that there was no need to cancel their holiday trips to save fuel. As New Year's Eve approached, in fact, the only thing rationed in Rhodesia was Scotch whisky.