Online Reporter
Sunday Mail Reporter
AT least 52 graves have been rehabilitated at the Harare Provincial Heroes Acre ahead of the Heroes Day commemorations in August, with more expected to be attended to in the coming weeks.
Friends of Veterans of the Liberation Struggle (FOVLS), an affiliate of the ruling ZANU PF party, is carrying out the work, which also includes plans to upgrade the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and install a quarter guard for parade at the shrine.
The rehabilitation of liberation war heroes’ burial sites will be replicated at all provincial heroes’ acres across the country.
Speaking after inspecting the rehabilitation of some graves at Harare Provincial Heroes Acre this week, ZANU PF Secretary for War Veterans Cde Douglas Mahiya commended FOVLS for the work.
He called on patriotic Zimbabweans and the corporate world to support the organisation’s efforts, saying they go a long way in preserving the memory of the liberation struggle through the maintenance and beautification of resting places of liberation heroes.
“Let me speak about our vision for this burial site,” he said.
“There is a lot of work that needs to be done. We need to erect tombstones; there is need to erect the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, we need to lay a lawn.
“But this should not be done on this shrine only; we want it to be replicated at all provincial centres where our heroes are buried. This means we need more help and we appeal to those who can come in to assist so that we get to all parts of the country.”
Cde Mahiya said by working on heroes’ burial sites, FOVLS was playing a key role in educating the public about virtues of the liberation struggle and its centrality to the country’s independence.
He also commended organisations such as Geo Pomona, Fumati Engineers, Mounting Investments and Victory Chanters International for consistently partnering with FOVLS in its programmes.
FOVLS chairperson Cde Wellington Charuka saluted Cde Mahiya for leading from the front by actively supporting the organisation’s work.
“We would like to thank Cde Mahiya for supporting this work, which we believe is important to preserve the legacy of our hard-fought liberation struggle,” he said.
“We are playing our part, and we hope through this work people, especially the young generation, will learn a lot about not only the liberation struggle, but also those who are buried at these shrines and the sacrifices they made to liberate the country.”
FOVLS Harare province chairperson and national spokesperson Cde Takemore Mazuruse said the organisation’s work was sacrosanct because it recognises the importance of liberation heroes, both living and departed, who played a significant role in liberating the country and laying the foundations of the nation.
Cde Mazuruse saluted the country’s leaders and war veterans for giving FOVLS the nod to honour the country’s heroes.
“We are grateful for the gesture of support we are receiving from everyone,” he said.
“As FOVLS, we want to thank Cde Mahiya, including the entire Harare Province War Veterans League led by their chairman Cde John Guta, as well as the party structures in Harare province, especially Warren Park and Highfield district, for their full participation.”
FOVLS is engaging partners and key stakeholders to mobilise additional resources towards the national initiative of rehabilitating, cleaning and landscaping heroes’ resting places while educating the public, particularly the younger generation, about the country’s liberation war history.
The organisation is registered as a private voluntary organisation and has been operating since 2022 with the full support of ZANU PF, the Ministry of War Veterans Affairs and the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe, which oversees national shrines and monuments across the country.
