ONE of the descendants of King Lobengula Prince Zwidekalanga Khumalo yesterday said the country can only heal from the wounds of such atrocities as Gukurahundi after reviving the Ndebele monarch.
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Zwidekalanga – who last year led a delegation comprising three other Khumalos, Nhlanhla, Ndumiso and Dumakude Hadebe to South Africa for a peace and reconciliation initiative led by Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini – said they had learnt valuable lessons from the programme.
The event was held from December 26-28 last year at the Enyokeni Royal Palace in KwaZulu Natal and was attended by South Africa President Jacob Zuma and Inkatha Freedom Party leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi, among other prominent Zulus.
“We were invited to the event as observers,” Zwidekalanga said.
“It was a peace and reconciliation exercise between the Zulu Kingdom and those people who fought with it, the British, the Indians and others and there were thousands of people. It was an eye opener and there are things which we Zimbabweans can learn from such an exercise. Uppermost is the need for the revival of Umthwakazi with its monarch because what we realised is that traditional leaders are better positioned to be arbiters during periods of political strife as they are expected to be apolitical.
“A King sees beyond his own interests as he is worried about serving the interests of the nation, unlike a politician.” He said in Matabeleland it was important to strengthen all cultures that fall under the Ndebele monarch and have a leader who will lead the process of healing and reconciliation with regards to Gukurahundi.
An estimated 20 000 villagers were killed during a State-sponsored military crackdown on perceived dissidents in Matabeleland and Midlands regions in the 1980s. Although Zanu PF has declared it a closed chapter, Matabeleland residents have demanded government to own up and compensate the victims.
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“People had to be cleansed first for having taken part in brutal activities. But what we learnt is that it is possible to reconcile and what is needed is to be able to forgive and forget, which is the difficult part.”
Zimbabwe’s Organ for National Healing, Reconciliation and Integration has largely been criticised for failing to deliver what ideally should be its mandate.
