THE late Catholic priest Heinrich Karlen has been described as one of Bulawayo’s unsung heroes in light of the key roles he played during the liberation war and Gukurahundi era.
This came out on Wednesday during a memorial lecture organised by Ibetshu LikaZulu, where several civil society leaders hailed Karlen for standing up against the racist colonial regime and later against then Prime Minister Robert Mugabe’s autocratic rule soon after independence.
Reverend Sikhalo Cele, who is also a human rights advocate, said Karlen’s work deserved recognition after he confronted Mugabe over the Gukurahundi massacres that claimed the lives of more than 20 000 people in Matabeleland and Midlands provinces in the 1980s.
“During the Gukurahundi genocide, Karlen stood strong and courageously. He had a two-hour meeting with Robert Mugabe arguing his case, putting his foot down and saying the massacre of innocent people should stop,” Cele said.
“We remember a man who is an unsung hero, a defender of human rights, he was a man of principle, he was not swayed by the developments of his time, he stood for justice, he stood for the truth.”
Cele said if it was not for Karlen, the mass killings would have claimed more lives.
Human rights activist Effie Ncube said: “Lectures such as these should also be conducted where there are mass graves, in areas such as Balagwe, so that people learn more not only about this great man, but also to emphasise that Gukurahundi must be addressed.”
The civic society organisations called on the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission to work towards finding closure to the mass killings.
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