''International law and liberation movements:the legal status of liberation movements in southern africa,with rhodesia as a case study

The question of the status of liberation
Movements in Southern Africa is a topical controversy in both international law and politics. In some circles, liberation movements are branded as savage terrorist organisations and in some they are regarded as some kind of legitimate salvation armies which deserve all the support necessary to undertake their liberation programmes. These liberation movements have "caused" great loss of life and property and the international community is divided about their status and thereby indirectly creating a threat to international peace and security, a state of affairs which might result in a Third World War. Bearing all these considerations in mind, the question arises: What does international law say about this political phenomenon of liberation movements? What is the position of liberation movements in international law? Are they legal or illegal in international law? These questions have been a problem to the writer for sometime. In order to answer these questions, the writer, would therefore like to determine the status of liberation Movements in international law, in this dissertation. To be able to do this, he has selected relevant institutions of international law against
which he will examine the position or status liberation Movements in Southern Africa with Rhodesia as a Case study, These institutions are: Acquisition of Territory, Self-Determination, Human Rignts, Recognition, International Humanitarian Law and The Use of force.