Mphoko on Gukurahundi climbdown

Vice-President Phelekezela Mphoko has made a dramatic u-turn on Gukurahundi  telling members of the late Chief Masuku's family in Nzula, Nathisa in Matobo district that people buried in shallow graves will be exhumed and given decent burials.

Mphoko also heads the National Healing, Peace and Reconciliation ministry.

Rights groups say more than 20,000 civilians were killed in Matabeleland and the Midlands when government unleashed a purpose-trained army brigade on the two regions, supposedly to hunt down dissidents.

Reburial of victims has been one of the key demands from affected families and activists but Mphoko ruled out exhumations recently claiming that digging up graves was unAfrican.

"We cannot go to the mass graves and start digging. It is not in our African culture," he said then.

However, on yesterday, Mphoko said the programme, which is already being carried out in some parts of the country, was part of the national healing and reconciliation process.

The Government will conduct the exercise in consultation with the traditional leadership.

"We're the leaders of this country and it's our responsibility to address those matters. What we have to do is to issue birth and death certificates to  those who were affected by Gukurahundi and rebury their loved ones properly in terms of the laws of our country as well as economically empower them," he said as quoted by the Chronicle.

"As the Government we've resolved to bring the issue of Gukurahundi to finality once and for all and starting this week we will roll out the programme of issuing birth certificates to families of the victims of post-independence disturbances in the Midlands and Matabeleland region," he said.