| Vumba massacre | |
|---|---|
| Part ofRhodesian Bush War | |
 The bodies of two of the children, Rebecca Evans and Joy McCann, together with one of the women, Mary Fisher. | |
 Interactive map of Vumba massacre | |
| Location | Bvumba Mountains,Rhodesia |
| Date | 23 June 1978 |
| Deaths | 12 |
| Injured | 1 |
| Victims | Missionaries of theElim Pentecostal Church |
| Perpetrators | Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (ZANLA) |
TheVumba massacre (also known as theElim Mission massacre) was amassacre of eightBritish missionaries and four children committed byZANLA guerrillas during theRhodesian Bush War on 23 June 1978. The missionaries belonged to theElim Pentecostal Mission based in theVumba mountains near theMozambican border inRhodesia.
The guerrillas separated White missionaries and their relatives from the rest of the camp and axed, battered or bayoneted them to death. Black teachers and students were told that "some White staff have been arrested" and ordered not to report the incident to the authorities.[1] The victims included three couples, two single women, three children and a 3-week-old baby.[2] All victims were British citizens.[1] Four of the five women had beenraped, and one woman was found with an axe in her back. Three children were discovered lying dead next to a woman inpyjamas.[2]
One woman who was beaten and dragged away survived after being found in a serious condition on the next day, she died a week later in hospital. The only White resident who avoided the attack altogether had hidden himself after being warned by a Black servant.[1]
Since 1972, nearly 40 missionaries had been killed before the Vumba massacre, and only two days after it, twoGermanJesuits were killed west ofSalisbury. The Vumba massacre was the single worst attack on Europeans and church representatives in Rhodesia.[3][2]
The site of the massacre, the formerEagle School buildings which were used by the Elim Mission, were subsequently taken over by theZANU–PF and used as a training camp, while access was restricted for others.[4]
According to a 2017The Sunday Telegraph report, government cables indicated that the British Prime MinisterJames Callaghan received credible information thatRobert Mugabe's forces were behind the massacre, but they decided to ignore the issue to avoid disrupting the on-going peace talks.[5]
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