Mozambique People's Republic until Like many regional African conflicts during the late twentieth century, the impetus for the Mozambican Civil War included local dynamics exacerbated greatly by the polarizing effects of Cold War politics. Portugal fought a long and bitter counter-insurgency conflict in its three primary African colonies— Angola , Mozambique , and Guinea-Bissau —from the s to the mids, when they finally received independence following the Carnation Revolution.
In Mozambique, the armed struggle against colonial rule was spearheaded by the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique FRELIMO , which was initially formed in exile [ 22 ] but later succeeded in wresting control of large sections of the country from the Portuguese.
Portugal responded by embarking on a massive buildup of military personnel and security forces in Mozambique. In April , Portugal's longstanding Estado Novo political order was dismantled as a result of the Carnation Revolution.
In Mozambique, the announcement sparked an uprising by right-wing elements in the white population, joined by disgruntled veterans of the colonial army and some black Mozambicans outraged by FRELIMO's pending unilateral assumption of power.
Vorster was unwilling to intervene, fearing condemnation from the international community for any interference with the decolonisation process in a neighbouring country. The independence of Mozambique and Angola in challenged white minority rule in Southern Africa. Firstly, the independence wars in Angola and Mozambique demonstrated that even with great military resources it was virtually impossible for a small white minority to guarantee the safety of its members, let alone to exert control over a mobilised and agitated population outside of major power centres.
