The Wiriyamu Massacre of 1972: Its Context, Genesis, and Revelation

Abstract

AbstractThis text on the Wiriyamu massacre of 1972 in Mozambique uses fieldwork and archival materials to address its historical context, the methods used to collect data for the narrative, the trajectory that the narrative took to reach the pages of The Times of London, the contest that ensued over its veracity, and its eventual acceptance as true by all parties concerned. The text concludes that both the context as well as the construction of the massacre narrative was much more complex and nuanced than the extant literature suggests. Its revelation too was governed by a series of factors, some directly related to the story and the timing of its arrival in London, and others entirely disconnected from the text of the massacre as received by The Times of London. The text discusses in the end how both the preponderance of evidence and a change in regime in Portugal among other factors delivered the narrative safely for all to agree on its veracity as a common text.