The Commission on Rhodesian Opinion, also known as the Pearce Commission, was a British commission set up in 1971 by

Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen as ...

Sir Alec Douglas-Home Alexander Frederick Douglas-Home, Baron Home of the Hirsel (; 2 July 1903 – 9 October 1995), styled as Lord Dunglass between 1918 and 1951 and being The 14th Earl of Home from 1951 till 1963, was a British Conservative Party (UK), Conse ...

to test the acceptability of a proposed constitutional settlement in

Rhodesia Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of S ...

. The commission was popularly known after as the Pearce Commission after its chairman, retired British judge

Edward Pearce, Baron Pearce Edward Holroyd Pearce, Baron Pearce, (9 February 1901 – 26 November 1990) was a British barrister and judge. He served as a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary from 1962 until 1969. In 1971–72, he chaired the Pearce Commission, which was char ...

. The Pearce Commission reported in 1972 that although the European, Coloured, and Asian communities of Rhodesia were in favour of the proposals, the African population rejected them.

Background

The commission was established on 25 November 1971, pursuant to the terms of the Proposals for Settlement agreed between the British and Rhodesian governments on 21 November 1971. The settlement recognised Rhodesia's 1969 constitution as the legal frame of government, while agreeing that gradual legislative representation was an acceptable formula for unhindered advance to majority rule. Nevertheless, the new settlement, if approved, would also implement an immediate improvement in black political status, offer a means to terminate racial discrimination, and provide a solid guarantee against retrogressive constitutional amendments.

Members

Chairman

Lord Pearce Edward Holroyd Pearce, Baron Pearce, (9 February 1901 – 26 November 1990) was a British barrister and judge. He served as a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary from 1962 until 1969. In 1971–72, he chaired the Pearce Commission, which was cha ...

Deputy Chairmen

Lord Harlech Baron Harlech, of Harlech in the County of Merioneth, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1876 for the Conservative politician John Ormsby-Gore, with remainder to his younger brother William. He had previously re ...

* Sir Maurice Dorman * Sir Glyn Jones * Sir Frederick Pedler (withdrew on personal grounds on 7 January 1972)

Commissioners

* D. Blain * G. R. B. Blake, OBE * J. E. Blunden * J. H. Burges * P. L. Burkinshaw, OBE * I. E. Butler * T. H. R. Cashmore * A. F. Dawkins (1916-2009), schoolmaster and uncle of

Richard Dawkins Richard Dawkins (born 26 March 1941) is a British evolutionary biologist and author. He is an emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford and was Professor for Public Understanding of Science in the University of Oxford from 1995 to 2008. An ath ...

. * F. W. Essex, CMG * D. F. H. H. Frost, MBE * Miss Freda H. Gwilliam, CBE * J. L. S. Harrison * J. F. Hayley, OBE * P. A. Large * J. D. Massingham * M. Patey, MBE * C. G. C. Rawlins, DFC, OBE * J. C. Strong * A. St. John Sugg, CMG * A. H. Whitfield * R. M. Allen (Statistician)

Secretariat

* H. Smedley, CMG, MBE (Secretary-General) * J. R. L. G. Varcoe (Deputy Secretary-General) * B. E. Pauncefort (Assistant Secretary-General (Press)) * A. B. Gundersen (Assistant Secretary) * A. Fayle (Administrative Officer)

References

Report

* Rhodesia: Report of the Commission on Rhodesian Opinion Under the Chairmanship of the Right Honourable the Lord Pearce. London:

His Majesty's Stationery Office The Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) is the body responsible for the operation of His Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) and of other public information services of the United Kingdom. The OPSI is part of the National Archives of the Un ...

. 1972. Cmnd. 4964.

Secondary literature

* * * {{Cite journal , last=White , first=Luise , date=2011 , title='Normal Political Activities': Rhodesia, The Pearce Commission, and the African National Council , url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41480243 , journal=The Journal of African History , volume=52 , issue=3 , pages=321–340, doi=10.1017/S0021853711000466 , jstor=41480243 , s2cid=154848533 1971 establishments in the United Kingdom 1972 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Rhodesia–United Kingdom relations 1972 in Rhodesia Organizations established in 1971 Alec Douglas-Home