daniel chigunwe
Isdore Guvamombe Assistant Editor
There has been a lot of talk about the skulls of our First Chimurenga heroes taken as trophies by colonial settlers and kept in British Museums.
The figure seems to vary from 13 to 17, but in that traditional spiritual realm the spirit mediums insist on five only having been taken there.
The war was inspired and supported by the spirits of the people and any attempt to get the skulls repatriated outside the traditional spiritual realm will be futile. We have spirit mediums of repute in this country and they can work with the Government.
In the past few months I have tried to research, using reputable spirit mediums and the findings are interesting.
Very, very interesting.
Orbiting in the spiritual realm surfing the totemic connection, the figure five is coming up tops.
The five – so how do we establish the families of the unknown ancestors, unless the British museum provide names and information on the trophies they have.
If we are to follow the forensic professional scientific standard every Zimbabwean family has to undergo a DNA sampling so as to find a match with the “heads” in the British museum.
If we are to use our indigenous knowledge system then we zero in on the spiritual totemic surfing, this will delimit the searching ground to a group of totems existing in the country.
The spiritual manifestations of those whose names are being tossed around should come to the party and authenticate themselves and indicate where they are or whether they want to be assisted as many things could have happen to deny them manifesting.
In my article the Mystery, I challenged the nation to sweep the home “Kutsvaira Musha” so that we are informed of the correct position regarding the “trophies” that were taken to British museums, there was silence and I still make that call.
As a nation those in position of authority or tasked to lead the exercise must take up the challenge, this will be Indigenous Knowledge System versus the Scientific System that relies’ on the DNA.
But is the DNA conclusive? Is there no gap?
How about combining the two knowledge systems to conclusively locate the subject to their rightful owners.
With the love of detail by the white historians how could they have missed the fate of those Africans who gave them a torrid time when they wanted to colonise our country as posted by Professor Timothy Stapleton who said, “We have the remains of 11 individuals from Zimbabwe, but after extensive research have found no evidence to suggest that they are the remains of Mbuya Nehanda or others associated with the First Chimurenga.
“We have shared all information we have with the authorities in Zimbabwe and are continuing discussions with the Zimbabwean government to discuss the repatriation of the remains we do hold”.
Is it because they wanted to leave no traces of the bodies of those they beheaded or killed.
These people love detail for future use take for example Oliver Cromwell who tormented King Charles was later tried and sentenced to death three years after he had died. So for those who might know this event here is a brief quote of the event.
On 30 January 1661, Oliver Cromwell’s body, along with that of John Bradshaw, President of the High Court of Justice for the trial of King Charles 1 and Henry Ireton, Cromwell’s son-in-law and general in the Parliamentary army during the English Civil War, were removed from Westminster Abbey to posthumously tried for high treason and “executed”. Are our ancestors only worth of trophies for the zoo and no records kept?
It cannot be a false claim that the British Museum Press can say they said “I don’t know of any evidence that the heads of the spirit mediums Nehanda and Kaguvi were taken after they were hanged in 1898.”
I don’t think any of the serious historical works on the 1896-97 rebellion, included anything about that, for they are governed by the laws/policies that states the procedures of receiving and storing trophies and artefacts, so there is a catch that will embarrass us in the future when we are tackling this issue in earnest let’s equip ourselves left, right and centre before it is too late.
Manyears Chuchu is correct when he said “the correct history of our country will not be told if we hide certain information”.
However, Manyears was not also clear when he responded to my article. He did not suggest the best way forward.
I want to challenge families and the mediums of those who have their ancestors tossed around to come clean on this issue. There are pressure groups who seems to be relying on conclusive information they had to also come clean on their sources and then the sources are interrogated.
Our National Museums and Monuments should comb through records that are kept in Archives especially materials relating to the British South Africa Police (BSA) records, for they were involved in most of the killings.
In our Indigenous Shona language Kudimurwa Musoro (decapitation) is loosely translated to mean to be killed.
Maybe most of our people are basing on this saying together with the actual action of killing that was carried out on some of our ancestors to toss the names. The word Kudimurwa Musoro becomes generic. Let’s be sure to say the word was not loosely used and all those names that have been tossed around.
Our ancestral spiritual lenses can link the head in the museums with their totems and families, to some this is unimaginable or sheer superstitious but it can prove to be the solution to our mysteries.
I was almost tempted to write those five big names that were tossed around whose heads are in the British museum, but on a second thought, I have decided to keep quiet so that I cannot arm those who may be faking that the spirits of our ancestors manifest through them, until they authenticate themselves by telling the nation where they really are.
This is not to say they were not murdered, but to solve the mystery of their burial places and the position of their heads, whether they are being held as trophies or are buried somewhere away from the bodies, information which I already have.
In what could shock the nation and the world of those killed by the whites was buried with his head which was later severed after three or four days by their relatives, the family may not want this disclosure, similarly to what happened to another ancestor who was not killed by the whites, but by his own people who then threw the body in the bush for wild animals to relish, will be another shocker.
Like I insinuated in my article, some were buried by their relatives and it was kept a secret. Those who may want to deny this, shame me and let’s help to solve this mystery together. I am not pouring cold water to efforts that have been made, I am only suggesting that let us go an extra mile in this matter.
I can hear some voices saying “Iwe taura nyaya yako” (Tell us your story). My story is its time now we put this matter to rest by doing what should be done and put closure to this mystery and rest the spirits of our ancestors.
Online Reporter