States and encourages their participation in an overall Southern African military treaty organisation against a common enemy”. By this time, the bantustan militaries had been integrated into the SADF’s ‘area war’ strategy, designed to counter the threat posed by the armed struggle of the African National Congress (ANC).
54 The 1st Transkei Battalion was established some time after the Transkei formally acceded to ‘self-governing’ status in 1963. At independence, the battalion had a total complement of 254 men, of which all of the officers were white seconded members of the SADF. By 1977, a voluntary national service scheme was introduced and the training of recruits within the Transkei was increased.
55 From the outset, diplomatic squabbles between Transkei and South Africa complicated their military relationship. In April 1978, Transkei broke off all diplomatic relations with South Africa, ostensibly over Pretoria’s decision to incorporate East Griqualand (historically part of the Cape) into Natal rather than Transkei. Consequently, Matanzima renounced Transkei’s non-aggression pact with South Africa and expelled all twenty-seven of South Africa’s advisors to the TDF’s 320-strong army. These moves were belied, however, by the Transkei’s continued dependence on South Africa for arms.
56 Following the departure of South African personnel, the discipline and efficiency of the Transkei forces rapidly deteriorated. Senior officers were accused of attempting to defraud the homeland government of R3 million and of involvement in an attempted police coup in 1980. In the absence of the SADF members, the Transkei hired former Rhodesian Special Forces members through a private company, Security Services International. This group, headed by Lieutenant Colonel Ron Reid-Daly, had close links with SADF Military Intelligence (MI) and was probably acting with SADF approval if not active support. Reid-Daly, the former commander of the Selous Scouts, was appointed as the chief of the TDF and charged with reorganising the homeland’s army, bringing with him some thirty-five colleagues who had served in Rhodesia.
57 By 1980, Transkei and South African politicians had papered over the diplomatic break and re-established official contact. The rapprochement was ostensibly based on South Africa’s willingness to re-negotiate land issues with the Transkei. However, at least as important was the financial crisis that had engulfed the homeland as a result of its break from Pretoria. South Africa’s transfer of R118 million to the Transkei in April 1980 was not without its own costs, however. The payment ended a deal whereby the Transkeian government would have received a loan
from Nigeria (considered a hostile source by South Africa) to help finance a harbour,
train the army and police, and establish a Nigerian military presence in the homeland.
58 Transkei’s return to the South African fold, nonetheless, brought its own rewards for the TDF. In the 1982/3 financial year, the TDF received R50 million from the Economic Co-operation Promotion Loan Fund, and a further grant of R30 million above its budgeted allowance to build up its counter-insurgency capabilities. Meanwhile, general recruitment was stepped up and, in June 1983, a record 400 trainees passed out of the Transkei School of Infantry. A second officer cadet course was in progress and, in July, a parachute course was established. Soon, in addition to its 1st Battalion and a Special Forces Regiment, the TDF boasted a small naval unit.
59 Although the Transkei took the lead in establishing local forces, homeland armies were being created in the other TBVC states. On Chief Lucas Mangope’s request, the South African government began military training in Bophuthatswana in 1976. The SADF set about creating a National Guard, with the goal of providing basic training for 221 men in time for the independence ceremonies in 1977. Some thirty South African officers and non-commissioned officers supervised the group. The first African non-commissioned officers were subsequently selected and eight officer candidates were provided with further instruction. Training initially occurred at a base near Mafikeng, although some members of the National Guard later received specialised counter-insurgency training in South Africa. The force’s equipment was donated by the SADF.
60 Two years after independence, the National Guard was reconstituted as the Bophuthatswana Defence Force (BDF). At the time, it consisted of an infantry battalion (50 per cent of whose members had been trained in counter-insurgency), a training unit and a logistics section. From the start, its commanders were South African. Former SADF Brigadier Hugh Turner was appointed commanding officer while Brigadier Riekert, another former SADF member, became Minister of Defence. Brigadier FEC van den Bergh, senior officer in the SADF’s North Western regional command, was named military advisor to Mangope. Because of these developments, one analyst has concluded that, in effect, the BDF constituted a unit of the SADF’s North-West Command.
61 Given Venda’s strategically important location, near to both Zimbabwe and Mozambique, the South African authorities were especially concerned to limit the potential security risks posed by independence. As a result, a strip of land bordering
VOLUME 2 CHAPTER 5 The Homelands from 1960 to 1990 PAGE 415