BOOK REVIEWS 91threats to a country's borders. For too long, nations have sought arms toprotect their security. However, for most people today, a feeling ofinsecurity arises more from worries about daily life than from the dread ofa cataclysmic world event. Job security, income security, health security,environmental security, security from crime Š these are the emergingconcerns of human security all over the world, including Southern Africa(1994, 3).The book should do well as essential text for postgraduate courses inStrategic Studies in Southern African politics. It is also recommended forpolicy makers, diplomatic, and non-governmental organisations interestedin Southern African affairs.University of Zimbabwe DONALD P. CHIMANIKIREOn The Frontline: Catholic Missions in Zimbabwe's Liberation War ByJanice Mclaughlin, Harare, Baobab Books, 1996, xvi, 352 pp., ISBN 0-908311-79-6.On the Frontline is a welcome addition to an already growing corpus ofliterature and knowledge on the liberation struggle in Zimbabwe. Theauthor, Sr Janice McLaughlin of the Maryknoll order, worked in Zimbabwefor a little more than half a year in 1977 before being deported to the USAby the Rhodesian regime because of her activities in the Justice and PeaceCommission. McLaughlin returned to her ministry of working with thepoor and oppressed by way of working in solidarity with the exiledZimbabwean refugees in Mozambique. While in Mozambique McLaughlinmade direct contacts, and even interviewed top leadership of the ZimbabweNational Liberation Army (ZANLA).The book examines the interaction between the ZANLA guerrillas andthe Church, ie, the whole people of God entailing the laity, religious andthe clergy associated with a particular Mission. McLaughlin analyses thisinteraction at rural missions which were on the frontline at differentstages of the war of liberation, located in four different dioceses of theChurch, different guerrilla operational zones and under missionaries offour different nationalities.Sr McLaughlin examines the Church where the grassroots communitieswere some of the most vulnerable sectors of society. One of her aims wasto prevent the histories of these communities from being 'lost', altered ordistorted (xii).The first part of the book focuses on the history preceding the war ofliberation, particularly the sowing of the seeds of racism by successivecolonial administrations.92 BOOK REVIEWSMcLaughlin's main thesis is that in spite of the national identities ofmission authorities and their differing views regarding the colonialgovernments, there were no notable ideological differences affecting therelations between the missions and the guerrillas. Rather the synergy thatexisted between the missions and the neighbouring rural communitiesbecame the variable that ultimately determined and qualified the directionof relations between the missions and guerrillas.The overall assessment that Mclaughlin makes is that the missionaries'concern for the suffering rural folk at the hands of government forces ledthe guerrilla fighters to revise their pre-conceived ideas about religion andthe missionaries. They finally accepted missionaries and other missionpersonnel as collaborators rather than enemies.The final part of the book considers some ethical implications of theviolence associated with the armed struggle. The discussion leads towardsthe question of whether or not the armed struggle in Zimbabwe was a justwar or terrorism. McLaughlin's arguments on this subject are refreshingand interesting. McLaughlin makes two related points on violence and justwar. The first point is that the missions played a positive role of humanizingthe armed struggle by fraternizing with, and assisting the guerrillas, treatingthe injured, providing medical supplies, food, clothing and rest. The secondpoint is that the violence by guerrillas was selective and moderate; itnever measured up to that of the Rhodesian Government security forces.Consequently, the author relates the victory of the guerrilla forces toZANLA guerrillas' noble goals and tactics.Another issue that emerges in Part III is the relationship betweenmissions and mediums, or Christianity and African traditional religion.McLaughlin argues that spirit mediums offered spiritual and psychologicalsupport that proved to be good for the morale of guerrilla forces and thegrassroots communities. For the guerrillas there was no contradictionbetween Christianity and African traditional religion; both had a place inthe struggle.Chapter ten looks at the development in the mentality of the CatholicChurch in Zimbabwe from 1972, when the Justice and Peace Commissionwas formed, up to the Declaration of Intent in 1977, reflecting a new visionof the Church. From then on, McLaughlin argues, the Catholic Churchbecame a Church of the People, through sharing in the persecution,arrests, detention and torture of the rural people. Through the war ofliberation, the commitment of religious sisters to the grassrootscommunities was deepened. Equally, the sisters' status was raised. Layleaders and sisters kept the Church going.McLaughlin, however, regrets that 'in spite of the radical voices in theChurch and involvement of many of the Church's personnel at thegrassroots with the liberation forces, the church in Zimbabwe neverBOOK REVIEWS 93developed a full-fledged theology of liberation' (p. 271). As the crisis ofwar abated, people reverted to the familiar structures. In the epilogueMcLaughlin highlights the tensions that existed between the Churchhierarchy and the progressive Justice and Peace Commission after thewar. The latter wanted to build on the foundation made during the strugglein terms of developing a fully-fledged popular Church. The hierarchy,however, was not comfortable with a new ecclesiology that would allowfor a theology of liberation. Instead, they were keen to go back to thesituation of the Church before the crisis of the war: if there was anytheology to go by, then it was the theology of reconstruction.In McLaughlin's perception the Catholic Church in Zimbabwe will liveto regret the lost opportunity. Possibly, this is another level at which therevolution in Zimbabwe lost its way; not just at the political and economiclevels.On the Frontline is clearly an important milestone in the study of theinterface between religion and revolution or Church and state. It is basedon first-hand experience of the author, on over a hundred interviewscarried out with top leadership, and a variety of archival sources, includingthose of ZANU and ZANLA, which she later catalogued for future use byother researchers.There are few inaccuracies, however, which need to be brought to theattention of readers. It is true that the Catholic church is the single largestchurch in Zimbabwe. However, by the time of the publication of the book,it did not have only 'just under half a million members' (p. 5): membershipwas just under a million, which statistically translates to 9,5% of thenational population (Catholic Directory, 1996). Figure 17 should havebeen part of Chapter 7, next to Figure 18 on p. 174. Zvavhera on p. 191should read Zvavahera; Sheshe on p. 196 should read Chisheche; Tiresi onp. 202 should read Tirizi; and Regina Coeli convent on pp. 262 and 263should read Regina Mundi convent (Highfield).More significant than the inaccuracies above is the information relatedto the 'Gutu Massacre' (pp. 196-7) which, unfortunately, is based onevidence from 'interviews with other former ZANLA combatants who werenot present when the incident took place' (p. 218). It is not clear why theauthor did not seek first-hand evidence from some of the many civiliansfrom Kamungoma who were present at the event.1Her evidence conflicts with surviving eye-witness accounts of theevent and puts in doubt the author's claim that she is concerned withThe reviewer has a detailed account of this incident based on interviews from survivors.Paul Mugarirwa, a technical assistant at the Department of Animal Science, University ofZimbabwe was one of the survivors who became my key informant (Interview with PaulMugarirwa, 12 Nov., 1996 Š He confirmed the account that I had got from Elias Chagondaand Silence Dizha in Chingombe in May, 1988).94 BOOK REVIEWShistories of communities whose record she wants to save from loss,unaltered and undistorted.In spite of these few lapses, On the Frontline is an important contributionto the study of the Church and its involvement in the war of liberation inZimbabwe. This book is a most useful resource for all who are interestedin studying the role of the Church in the armed struggle in Zimbabwe.University of Zimbabwe PAUL GUNDANIThe Painted Hills: Rock Art of the Matopos By Nick Walker. Gweru,Mambo Press, 1996, 102pp., ISBN 0-86922-638-X.The prehistoric rock art of Zimbabwe, particularly that found in theMatopos Hills in Matabeleland, has been the focus of both academic andpublic interest since the early part of this century. Much has been writtenon it with writers covering such aspects of the art as its authorship,dating, meaning and significance. However, many of the published workson the Matopos art were published over 30 years ago (eg Cooke, 1959) ata time when rock art studies were at a very elementary stage in Zimbabweand not as many sites had been documented. Interpretation, dating andgeneral understanding of this heritage from the past were very simplisticand in some cases much influenced by the colonial background of thewriters. Some of the art was for example attributed to exotic populations(eg Breuil, 1955). Those who saw it as indigenous interpreted it as 'art forart's sake' and therefore of no major significance to the painters (Cooke,1959). Others, who saw a deeper meaning to it, associated it with huntingmagic (Burkitt, 1928).Drawing from his long experience working on the Stone Agearchaeology of Matabeleland, as well as from the developments in rock artstudies in southern Africa pioneered in South Africa by such leadingscholars as Lewis Williams, Nick Walker, in The Painted Hills, provides themost comprehensive and most up to date coverage of the Matopos rockart. The book is divided into nine sections (which are not numbered) inwhich Walker brings together discussion of most of the questions bothmembers of the public and academic researchers have always askedabout this art Š By whom, when, why, and how were the paintingsexecuted? Using archaeological evidence from his own, and otherresearchers' excavations and cross-referencing with work from other partsof Zimbabwe and southern Africa, Walker convincingly demonstrates thatmost of the Matopos art dates from 9 000 years ago and continues up toafter 1 500 years ago. Several thousands of years before and during thisperiod, 9 000 to 1 500 years ago, the Matopos Hills, in common with the