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Fatima Bulla-Musakwa
ON April 18 every year, Zimbabwe celebrates its independence with great pomp and fanfare.
However, for 69-year-old Gogo Chiedza Matema (not her real name) from Mbembesi in Matabeleland North province, the day always brings back harrowing memories. She was brutally attacked in her hut on that very day.
As she slept with her 108-year-old mother and her child living with disabilities, a 21-year-old man she recognised from a previous encounter broke in and threatened her with an axe.
“When I told him that I had recognised him, he was angry and tried to confuse me by speaking in Shona,” she told The Sunday Mail recently.
“He then hit me with an axe on my back.”
Despite putting up a fight, the attacker managed to subdue and rape her.
After committing the heinous offence, the man took to his heels, leaving behind a grief-stricken and traumatised Gogo Matema. Calls to the police went unanswered and seeking help from a neighbour proved futile.
In desperation, she contacted her siblings, who, along with the neighbourhood watch group, formed a search party that ended up apprehending the perpetrator.
“He admitted committing the crime before the police and asked for forgiveness,” she said.
“The Musasa Project helped me by taking the case to court, where he was convicted and sentenced to 15 years in prison.”
This was not Gogo Matema’s first ordeal.
She had a previous encounter with another rapist sometime back.
However, the man who perpetrated the attack remains unaccounted for.
This time, through an initiative called the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) by the Musasa Project, justice prevailed.
Hope
The initiative, led by the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community and Small and Medium Enterprises Development, in partnership with several United Nations-affiliated organisations, provides crucial services to vulnerable women and girls who have suffered the same ordeal as Gogo Matema.
The programme provides support services to women and girls in remote areas, who fall victim to gender-based violence (GBV). They are provided with a shuttle service. They are transported to spaces where critical services are provided.
Through the shuttle service, survivors are accessing critical medical care and legal aid.
The programme, which is part of the El Niño Anticipatory Action Plan to address social issues arising from the drought, also focuses on raising awareness about GBV within communities and strengthening local support structures.
Gogo Matema’s journey to healing is a testament to the effectiveness of the programme. Though the scars of her experience run deep, the support she received offered her a second chance at finding peace.
The programme is being implemented by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) through the Musasa Project.
The six-month programme is targeting to assist 32 000 people in eight districts — Buhera, Chipinge, Mwenezi, Chiredzi, Hwange, Umguza, Beitbridge and Gwanda.
Umguza district, known for its gold reserves, has seen a rise in GBV cases, including rape and physical abuse, as well as child marriages. Lack of transportation has also made it difficult for survivors to access medical services, as well as police and legal help. However, through the initiative, GBV survivors are accessing free shuttle services to access life-saving support.
This has helped enhance clinical management of rape victims, provision of psychosocial support and referrals for legal aid. The shuttle service is provided by a specialised GBV counsellor and a driver. They support the survivors, in collaboration with behaviour-change facilitators and specialised counsellors.
Shuttle counsellor for Umguza district Ms Nobukhosi Ngwenya said she is always on call to support those in need of her service. “It’s about emergency response, so we are always ready,” she said.
“Some need to be taken to hospital urgently; for example, victims of sexual abuse need clinical services within 72 hours. Others may want to go to the police to report their cases, or to court. Some may not have money for transport, and we provide them with a vehicle.”
The service has since assisted 5 499 survivors, including 601 men, to access essential services.
The shuttle functions as a mobile one-stop centre, offering counselling, referrals and even police escorts for safety.
Ms Ngwenya said she normally receives cases through local safe space peer facilitators and social behaviour-change champions embedded in the community.
Upon receiving a call for help, she phones the driver before they rush to assist the survivor. They are accompanied by a police officer for security reasons.
When they get to the survivor, they conduct a counselling session and assess the form of service required.
The shuttle counsellor and driver also work with the community leadership.
UNFPA country representative Ms Miranda Tabifor said: “We have also noticed, as the beneficiaries testified, that the shuttle service has helped them to be ferried to access services because of the distance of this community to town, something which is critical.”
While the CERF programme is set to end next month, Musasa has undertaken to continue offering its support services.
Experts say the programme illustrates the power of a simple solution — providing transportation — to break the cycle of a complicated and violent problem. With continued support and community involvement, survivors will not only access help but also rebuild their lives, creating a brighter future for themselves and their families.
Online Reporter