Sundaymail Editor
Debra Matabvu
THE remains of 11 First Chimurenga heroes and heroines being kept at the Natural History Museum in London, United Kingdom, are set to be repatriated to the country “soon”, with the authorities now finalising the transfer modalities and preparing the requisite reburial procedures.
This comes as the authorities have identified more remains linked to the 1893 Matabele rebellions and the First Chimurenga at seven other British institutions.
The authorities have now begun negotiations with the British government to facilitate the release and repatriation of skulls being kept at institutions such as the Duckworth Laboratory in Cambridge, Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford, British Museum in London and Manchester Museum in Manchester.
Ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Permanent Secretary Dr Gerald Gwinji said: “Independence came as a result of sacrifices made by the sons and daughters of the soil dating back to 1893 and the Second Chimurenga.
“Repatriation of our heroes and heroines will bring back the spirit of patriotism to the land, provide for decent reburials of our pioneer heroes and heroines, who sacrificed their lives for the independence of this country.”
A high-level inter-ministerial committee is finalising a roadmap detailing “the transfer modality, timing and the repatriation, as well as the reburial”.
“A team from the Ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage was tasked to conduct a due diligence exercise on migrated human remains of Zimbabwean origin in the United Kingdom.
“The Natural History Museum in London had confirmed that it had human remains of 13 individuals that originated from Zimbabwe.”
The museum, added Dr Gwinji, confirmed having a catalogue of 13 items of Zimbabwean origin, which they claim were salvaged from battlefields and caves, as indicated in their accession registers.
“However, from the documentary scrutiny conducted by the delegation, it can be concluded that the individuals perished as a result of their resistance to colonial rule and some of the remains are linked to the 1893 Matabele rebellions and possibly the First Chimurenga of the 1896-1897 punitive expedition.
“Gazetted ‘problematic’ Africans during this era were executed outside existing laws.
“After the first due diligence exercise, the Natural History Museum’s directorate expressed willingness to return the mortal remains, subject to approval of the museums’ board of trustees.
“The board of trustees gave approval to repatriate to Zimbabwe 11 individuals in their museum as requested.”
The Government, he said, has undertaken benchmarking visits to countries that have successfully repatriated human remains and archival documentation from their erstwhile colonisers, including Kenya and Tanzania.
Zimbabwean experts are also preparing to visit New Zealand and Namibia.
“Other museums believed to be holding remains of Zimbabwean origin were also engaged during the United Kingdom due diligence exercise,” added Dr Gwinji.
“These included Duckworth Laboratory in Cambridge, Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford, British Museum in London and Manchester Museum in Manchester.”
The Government has also submitted a repatriation request to Cambridge University, which is currently being processed.
“There are also other collections of interest in the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh and State Archives of Lucerne that include human remains that also require further investigation.”
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