Chronicle Editor
Nqobile Tshili, Chronicle Reporter
Villagers from Lupane, Nsuza, Nkayi, and Tsholotsho have approached the media, raising alarm over the mysterious disappearances of fellow community members who contributed to a documentary on the Gukurahundi atrocities.
The documentary, which was filmed between 2018 and 2019, featured testimonies from survivors and witnesses of the 1980s massacres. Many of those who participated are reported to have gone missing one by one, leaving their communities gripped with fear.
The villagers revealed that those who contributed to the documentary had been convinced to speak out after President Emmerson Mnangagwa publicly encouraged citizens to feel free to talk about Gukurahundi without fear of consequences.
But this came with a lot of doubts from various organisations who questioned the genuineness of this statement considering that during the period the President was one of those in the forefront as the Minister of State Security then.
However, the villagers’ subsequent disappearances have created an atmosphere of anxiety and mistrust in the affected communities, with many now questioning the sincerity of the president’s assurances.
“We were told that it was safe to talk about what happened during Gukurahundi. Many of us believed those words and finally opened up about the horrors of that time because we wanted the truth to be known. Now, one by one, the people who spoke in the documentary are disappearing, and we don’t know where they are or what has happened to them,” said one villager from Lupane, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisal.
The villagers described the disappearances as systematic, with many of the contributors vanishing under unclear circumstances. Some were reportedly last seen being approached by unknown individuals, while others simply disappeared from their homes without a trace.
“The situation is terrifying. We are now afraid to even mention the word Gukurahundi because we fear we might be next. How can we believe in freedom of speech and reconciliation when this is happening to the very people who trusted the president’s words?” another villager from Nkayi said.
The documentary, which documented the accounts of survivors and families of victims, had been hailed at the time as a bold step toward confronting Zimbabwe’s dark chapter of the Gukurahundi massacres. However, the recent disappearances have cast a shadow over such efforts, with villagers calling for urgent intervention and accountability from the authorities.
“We want to know what has happened to our people. They spoke out because they believed it was finally safe to do so. Now, they are gone, and we are left with nothing but fear. If the government is serious about reconciliation, they must address these disappearances immediately,” a Tsholotsho villager pleaded.
The Gukurahundi atrocities, which occurred in the 1980s, saw thousands of civilians killed in Matabeleland and the Midlands during a military operation. While the government has made some attempts to address the past, critics argue that the lack of transparency and accountability continues to hinder true reconciliation.
Efforts to contact authorities for comment on the matter have so far been unsuccessful. Meanwhile, the villagers in Lupane, Nkayi, and Tsholotsho are demanding answers and assurances for their safety as fear continues to grip their communities.
In 2017, during his inauguration speech, President Mnangagwa claimed it was time to let bygones be bygones.
“We should never remain hostages to our past. I thus humbly appeal to all of us that we let bygones be bygones, readily embracing each other in defining a new destiny,” said President Mnangagwa.
During the wave of terror, the head of State Security and the Central Intelligence Organization was President Mnangagwa.
He was already a feared figure in Zimbabwe known as Ngwenya, or the Crocodile, for his fearsome reputation.
At the time Mnangagwa said dissidents were the “cockroaches” and the Fifth-Brigade “the DDT.”
Online Reporter