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Faan Martin
Faan Martin, was born in 1947 in the
scenic Rhodesian border city of Umtali. He was educated in Rhodesia and
South Africa. During the war he was a cattle
rancher in the Manicaland ...view moreFaan Martin, was born in 1947 in the
scenic Rhodesian border city of Umtali. He was educated in Rhodesia and
South Africa. During the war he was a cattle
rancher in the Manicaland province of Rhodesia.
After completing his national service
with 1 Independent Company he served as a territorial soldier with the 4th Infantry Battalion.
During his time in uniform, he qualified as a marksman and served in
the Operation Hurricane, Thrasher and Repulse areas. He also took part
in external operations into neighbouring Mozambique and served with a
helicopter gunship group known as a "Fire Force."
In November 1978, Rhodesian Security Forces attacked 200 terrorists on
a mountain on the Martins farm.
Three days after the battle in which eight ZANLA insurgents were killed
and a Rhodesian helicopter was shot down, the author and two friends
searched the mountain and found a huge arms cache.
Not long afterwards Rhodesian Special Branch policemen visited the
author and his wife Jayne and warned them that their
names had been found on a ZANLA death list after a highly successful
attack on a massive terrorist base in Mozambique.
One night in January 1979, 12 terrorists launched a bazooka attack on the Martins
family. They survived the attack, but it changed their
lives.
Concern over the safety of their four small children, the regular theft
of their cattle and knowing
Robert Mugabe would soon become the new political leader of the
country, eventually made the Martins immigrate to South Africa.
After a short spell of teaching and farming in South Africa, Martin
became a journalist. He has written 500 published magazine articles and
was the Editor of two weekly newspapers, the Northern Review and The
Pietersburger. Later he was the Assistant Editor of the Farmers Weekly
magazine.
He now lives in Scotland.view less