THE BURIAL of remains of a suspected Gukurahundi victim Bakethi “Manyela” Ndlovu at the weekend is another reminder that the government stance to pretend that the killings never happened would not work.
According to relatives, Ndlovu disappeared in 1984 from the Sikithi area of Gwanda after he was summoned to Sofa by members of the 5 Brigade.
His remains were only recovered recently at a cave in the Mtshabezi area with the assistance of an organisation known as Kuthula, which deals with counselling of victims of trauma.
The organisation said it helped the Ndlovu family while in the process of assisting another family that lost their relative during the dark period.
There is no doubt that there are hundreds of other families that are still struggling to find closure after their relatives disappeared without trace during Gukurahundi.
President Robert Mugabe has refused to acknowledge that atrocities were committed during the period he described as a “moment of madness”. The reluctance to acknowledge that era in the country’s history has made it impossible for compensation to be made available to victims who are still alive.
An unknown number of victims remain buried in mass graves, some of which are known to the authorities.
A report by the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace is the only availed impartial research into the atrocities. The report states that some of the victims were buried alive while pregnant women had their wombs ripped open by the soldiers who claimed they were carrying future dissidents in their wombs.
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It puts the number of the dead at over 20 000 and because the government is reluctant to acknowledge its role in the disturbances, the truth may never be known.
However, it is important that families of those who disappeared know where they are buried to allow for closure.
That families are now taking the initiative to locate remains of their missing relatives shows that the matter would not simply go away without measures being put in place for the truth to be told.
