adminSukulwenkosi Dube Plumtree Correspondent
A BULILIMA woman has been granted a protection order against her abusive husband who allegedly locked her up in a hut together with her two grandchildren aged five and 13 for two days.
Cain Tshuma, 63, of Tjehanga area accused his wife Nurien Zwanino, 57, of practising witchcraft.
Zwanino said her husband also threatened to torch the hut and kill her together with her grandchildren.
She said Tshuma only let them out after neighbours intervened.
Plumtree magistrate Livard Philemon granted Zvanino a protection order barring Tshuma from verbally and physically abusing Zwanino.
Zwanino said her husband of 38 years claimed that he had been bewitched by her.
“My husband is always accusing me of witchcraft. He’s constantly beating me up in front of our grandchildren. He also beats up these children as well,” she told court.
“He recently chased me out of our bedroom hut and ordered me to sleep with our grandchildren. He then locked us up in the hut for two days and remained outside with our youngest grandchild.”
She said she and her grandchildren survived on bread throughout the time they were locked up.
Zwanino said her husband fell ill a few years back which caused him to lose his job in South Africa and he started blaming his wife for his misfortune.
“My husband told me that I was responsible for his sickness and job loss. He said that he fell ill soon after my visit while he was working in the neighbouring country.
“On the day he locked us up, he threatened to torch the hut in order to kill me and my grandchildren. He alleged I was teaching the children witchcraft skills as well,” said Zvanino.
She said her husband was involved with several women during the time he was working in South Africa and had attributed her wife’s alleged evil deeds to jealousy.
Zwanino said her husband alleged that she bewitched him on purpose so that he would come back to Zimbabwe.
She said Tshuma was forcibly taking money from her which was meant for school fees and spending it on beer.
“It’s his habit to take money from me and use it to buy beer.
“The whole neighbourhood knows what happens in my homestead as he is always insulting me in public telling me that I bewitched him in order to get him to marry me.
“He has also publicly told me that my private parts are smelly because of my witchcraft activities,” she said.
Tshuma, who did not deny any of the allegations laid against him, promised to respect the court’s ruling.
In 2010 he was arraigned before the courts for severely assaulting his wife and fined $200.
Online Reporter