Opinion / Columnist
Gukurahundi graves should be turned into monuments and shrines
08 Jan 2015 at 16:22hrs | Views
Following the Gukurahundi invasion and genocide in Matabeleland and parts of Midlands over twenty years ago victims and surviving victims of Gukurahundi genocide have not received any form of restorative justice. There is no possibility of justice in the near or far future. The powerful perpetrator is still in power and it is possible that the first VP will take over from the number one perpetrator and we all know what it means as far as justice for the victims of the genocide is concerned. The only way just shall prevail is when the surviving victims of the genocide and other interested people stand up and fight for justice.
Violence and aggression has a pervasive psychological impact on the victim, the glaring and wanton violence and aggression on innocent unarmed and unsuspecting victims left a legacy of psychological trauma, anxiety, loss of confidence and loss of self-esteem on the survivors of the genocide. The people of Matabeleland and Midlands were subjected to horrific and unbearable violence and aggression over a long period of time. This caused untold suffering and left an indelible scar in their psychological and emotional faculties.
The genocide was unprovoked hostility, this kind of aggression is viewed as the most dangerous form because it is calculated and aimed at achieving goals of crimes of against humanity. It was a wicked attack on the overall well-being of the people of Matabeleland and Midlands aimed at degrading, denigrating, destroying, displacement, humiliating, liquidating and decapitating. The general broad goals were those of ethnic cleansing and extermination, and political domination as Zanu-PF was obsessed with a one party state at the time.
The people of Matabeleland and Midlands experienced what is called cumulative trauma. Cumulative trauma is experienced when a number of traumatic incidents are experienced and the emotional damage done is significant. It becomes worse when the traumatic event is prolonged and sustained. Genocide has continued until this day but in different form to include social and economic marginalisation of the people of Matabeleland and Midlands in spheres of life in the education sector, cultural imperialism and in the job market. The perpetrator has decided to unleash its little barking Chihuahua, Manheru to pour salt on the wounds of the people of Matabeleland and Midlands. Manheru feels that the people of Matabeleland and Midlands are insignificant to an extent that the population and victims should forget that they were massacred unprovoked. How sadistic is that line of thinking?
It is common knowledge that the Zanu-PF government has to date ignored resolving this matter. There are no visible and practical attempts by government to initiate processes and procedures to deal effectively with this painful history in our lives. The victims of the genocide continue to lie in shallow graves without decent reburials. The survivors continue to suffer the physical and psychological scars of the genocide without any emotional or practical support. Some people disappeared during Gukurahundi and are not known whether they were killed or not, even after ZAPU surviving leaders of genocide were force marched into signing the Unity Accord in 1987 no attempts were made to address and resolve the issue of the genocide. No declaration has been made as to whether the missing people are still alive or are now considered deceased. Nothing is said about the reburial of those victims whose remains are known in mass and shallow graves dotted all over Matabeleland and Midlands.
The history of Zimbabwe will record that the genocide was atrocious, brutal and barbaric; and that it was deliberate, calculated and well-planned. The conservative estimates are that over 20 000 lost their lives; however, this number was extracted from the CCJP report based on the information which was selectively collected up to 1984. Some estimates put the figure at around 100 000. The government knows the correct number as it commissioned its own enquiries whose reports were never published fearing an uprising if people realized the huge number of the people who were killed.
The damage was not only those killed but to the survivors as well as they were psychologically maimed and tortured and women and girls raped. All those who were killed, the more than 20 000 were never declared dead and were never accorded a decent burial; this means that the grief and bereavement process has not taken place. No cultural rites were done; the dead have not been laid to rest in peace and the living hasn't healed.
Often the bodies were interred in mass and shallow graves, a cultural taboo which needs to be rectified as soon is practicably possible. Some of the graves are known to the local people while others remain unknown. All the graves are still unmarked to date because the government has remained silent and interested at extinguishing all the evidence and to absolve itself from any responsibility for the genocide. The relatives and the Matabele nation as a whole need closure. They can only come to terms with their loss if they go through the natural process of grieving including the process of burying their loved ones according to their traditions and customs.
The people of Matabeleland are the aggrieved ones, the loss is theirs; the victims are their loved ones and the experience they suffered is beyond human comprehension, dignity and morality. In the bellies of unmark shallow and mass graves lay the bodies of the innocent, cut short at their prime life. These people meant everything to their loved ones; they were significant to them in every conceivable way.
It is the obligation for all people from Matabeleland and Midlands to treat the graves near wherever they live as a monuments and crime scenes. The moral obligation to treat these graves as monuments is symbolic to the traditions of the respect for the dead. People need to pay respects by putting any of the following: a wooden cross, a fence and a pile of stones. This act is for now a symbol of the tomb of the unknown victim of Gukurahundi genocide until such time official forensic identifications are completed by independent bodies. Icala kaliboli. Paying your respects to the victims every year on the anniversary of their murder is crucial as it will act as a constant reminder to Zanu-PF of the Gukurahundi brutal killings. It will take a long time for justice for victims of Gukurahundi genocide to prevail considering that the perpetrators are in positions of influence and will block every effort to bring the Gukurahundi master minders to true justice. They may even attempt to intimidate the people from doing these small but important steps to show respect to their loved ones.
Our social obligation as victims is to treat all the graves as crime scenes for purposes of historic crimes against humanity. People were buried in mine shafts, schools' blair toilets, shallow graves, mass graves, burned in house like garbage and some were simply left lying in open spaces. These are crime scenes. They need to be preserved for use as evidence in the future. It will be good, as much as possible to preserve these scenes without exhuming the bodies no matter how painful this could be to surviving victims whose desire is to have a decent burial for the loved ones.
There is going to be a time when this evidence will be important to prosecute the perpetrators whether the perpetrators will still be alive or dead at the time. These are some of the very important small steps people in Matabeleland and Midlands can do in their quest for future justice for the loved ones. Justice will surely come one day. We have seen this happen to other perpetrators of genocide in some parts of the world such as in Bosnia and Liberia to mention a few
Surviving victims can also keep records of the number, gender, age and names of deceased in various graves if that information is available to them. It will also be helpful to record the date, time and the names of the killer Gukurahundi soldiers who were involved even by their fictitious names. We now know that Constantine Chiwenga the top security aid to Robert Mugabe operated as Dominic Chinhenge during the genocide from the story published by Dinizulu Macaphulana. Real names of these factious names have a way of coming out.
Take photographs of these crime scenes as pictorial material is good evidence used in court proceedings. Most of all, tell the younger generation what happened. Historians can record this for future generations. An appeal is made to all individuals and organisations with an interest in the plight of victims of Gukurahundi to get closer to the victims and make their services known be it psychological therapy, representation, research, data compilations, advice and information. Make your services known so that these people can get the support and help they need.
The Manheru abuse is an attempt to revive the traumatic past experiences of the people of Matabeleland and Midlands and he is trying to play with their emotional vulnerability. He aims to instill fear in their hearts.
Manheru and his masters are in the panic mode due to new political developments driven by ZAPU that are progressive and inclusive hence the spirited attempt to discredit Dr Dumiso Dabengwa. Dr Dumiso Dabengwa did not express any interest at any time to be second Vice President as Manheru suggests. Dr Dabengwa's principles are not driven by self-gratification but by democratic principles of freedom, fairness, justice and social order. Dr Dumiso Dabengwa is the only known minister under Mugabe who resigned from office voluntary leaving behind all the otherwise unethical comforts that came with the post. He was not purged.
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Themba Mthethwa can be contacted at thembamthethwa05@yahoo.co.uk
Violence and aggression has a pervasive psychological impact on the victim, the glaring and wanton violence and aggression on innocent unarmed and unsuspecting victims left a legacy of psychological trauma, anxiety, loss of confidence and loss of self-esteem on the survivors of the genocide. The people of Matabeleland and Midlands were subjected to horrific and unbearable violence and aggression over a long period of time. This caused untold suffering and left an indelible scar in their psychological and emotional faculties.
The genocide was unprovoked hostility, this kind of aggression is viewed as the most dangerous form because it is calculated and aimed at achieving goals of crimes of against humanity. It was a wicked attack on the overall well-being of the people of Matabeleland and Midlands aimed at degrading, denigrating, destroying, displacement, humiliating, liquidating and decapitating. The general broad goals were those of ethnic cleansing and extermination, and political domination as Zanu-PF was obsessed with a one party state at the time.
The people of Matabeleland and Midlands experienced what is called cumulative trauma. Cumulative trauma is experienced when a number of traumatic incidents are experienced and the emotional damage done is significant. It becomes worse when the traumatic event is prolonged and sustained. Genocide has continued until this day but in different form to include social and economic marginalisation of the people of Matabeleland and Midlands in spheres of life in the education sector, cultural imperialism and in the job market. The perpetrator has decided to unleash its little barking Chihuahua, Manheru to pour salt on the wounds of the people of Matabeleland and Midlands. Manheru feels that the people of Matabeleland and Midlands are insignificant to an extent that the population and victims should forget that they were massacred unprovoked. How sadistic is that line of thinking?
It is common knowledge that the Zanu-PF government has to date ignored resolving this matter. There are no visible and practical attempts by government to initiate processes and procedures to deal effectively with this painful history in our lives. The victims of the genocide continue to lie in shallow graves without decent reburials. The survivors continue to suffer the physical and psychological scars of the genocide without any emotional or practical support. Some people disappeared during Gukurahundi and are not known whether they were killed or not, even after ZAPU surviving leaders of genocide were force marched into signing the Unity Accord in 1987 no attempts were made to address and resolve the issue of the genocide. No declaration has been made as to whether the missing people are still alive or are now considered deceased. Nothing is said about the reburial of those victims whose remains are known in mass and shallow graves dotted all over Matabeleland and Midlands.
The history of Zimbabwe will record that the genocide was atrocious, brutal and barbaric; and that it was deliberate, calculated and well-planned. The conservative estimates are that over 20 000 lost their lives; however, this number was extracted from the CCJP report based on the information which was selectively collected up to 1984. Some estimates put the figure at around 100 000. The government knows the correct number as it commissioned its own enquiries whose reports were never published fearing an uprising if people realized the huge number of the people who were killed.
The damage was not only those killed but to the survivors as well as they were psychologically maimed and tortured and women and girls raped. All those who were killed, the more than 20 000 were never declared dead and were never accorded a decent burial; this means that the grief and bereavement process has not taken place. No cultural rites were done; the dead have not been laid to rest in peace and the living hasn't healed.
Often the bodies were interred in mass and shallow graves, a cultural taboo which needs to be rectified as soon is practicably possible. Some of the graves are known to the local people while others remain unknown. All the graves are still unmarked to date because the government has remained silent and interested at extinguishing all the evidence and to absolve itself from any responsibility for the genocide. The relatives and the Matabele nation as a whole need closure. They can only come to terms with their loss if they go through the natural process of grieving including the process of burying their loved ones according to their traditions and customs.
The people of Matabeleland are the aggrieved ones, the loss is theirs; the victims are their loved ones and the experience they suffered is beyond human comprehension, dignity and morality. In the bellies of unmark shallow and mass graves lay the bodies of the innocent, cut short at their prime life. These people meant everything to their loved ones; they were significant to them in every conceivable way.
It is the obligation for all people from Matabeleland and Midlands to treat the graves near wherever they live as a monuments and crime scenes. The moral obligation to treat these graves as monuments is symbolic to the traditions of the respect for the dead. People need to pay respects by putting any of the following: a wooden cross, a fence and a pile of stones. This act is for now a symbol of the tomb of the unknown victim of Gukurahundi genocide until such time official forensic identifications are completed by independent bodies. Icala kaliboli. Paying your respects to the victims every year on the anniversary of their murder is crucial as it will act as a constant reminder to Zanu-PF of the Gukurahundi brutal killings. It will take a long time for justice for victims of Gukurahundi genocide to prevail considering that the perpetrators are in positions of influence and will block every effort to bring the Gukurahundi master minders to true justice. They may even attempt to intimidate the people from doing these small but important steps to show respect to their loved ones.
Our social obligation as victims is to treat all the graves as crime scenes for purposes of historic crimes against humanity. People were buried in mine shafts, schools' blair toilets, shallow graves, mass graves, burned in house like garbage and some were simply left lying in open spaces. These are crime scenes. They need to be preserved for use as evidence in the future. It will be good, as much as possible to preserve these scenes without exhuming the bodies no matter how painful this could be to surviving victims whose desire is to have a decent burial for the loved ones.
There is going to be a time when this evidence will be important to prosecute the perpetrators whether the perpetrators will still be alive or dead at the time. These are some of the very important small steps people in Matabeleland and Midlands can do in their quest for future justice for the loved ones. Justice will surely come one day. We have seen this happen to other perpetrators of genocide in some parts of the world such as in Bosnia and Liberia to mention a few
Surviving victims can also keep records of the number, gender, age and names of deceased in various graves if that information is available to them. It will also be helpful to record the date, time and the names of the killer Gukurahundi soldiers who were involved even by their fictitious names. We now know that Constantine Chiwenga the top security aid to Robert Mugabe operated as Dominic Chinhenge during the genocide from the story published by Dinizulu Macaphulana. Real names of these factious names have a way of coming out.
Take photographs of these crime scenes as pictorial material is good evidence used in court proceedings. Most of all, tell the younger generation what happened. Historians can record this for future generations. An appeal is made to all individuals and organisations with an interest in the plight of victims of Gukurahundi to get closer to the victims and make their services known be it psychological therapy, representation, research, data compilations, advice and information. Make your services known so that these people can get the support and help they need.
The Manheru abuse is an attempt to revive the traumatic past experiences of the people of Matabeleland and Midlands and he is trying to play with their emotional vulnerability. He aims to instill fear in their hearts.
Manheru and his masters are in the panic mode due to new political developments driven by ZAPU that are progressive and inclusive hence the spirited attempt to discredit Dr Dumiso Dabengwa. Dr Dumiso Dabengwa did not express any interest at any time to be second Vice President as Manheru suggests. Dr Dabengwa's principles are not driven by self-gratification but by democratic principles of freedom, fairness, justice and social order. Dr Dumiso Dabengwa is the only known minister under Mugabe who resigned from office voluntary leaving behind all the otherwise unethical comforts that came with the post. He was not purged.
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Themba Mthethwa can be contacted at thembamthethwa05@yahoo.co.uk
Source - Themba Mthethwa
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