Thursday 22 February 2018

Gogo Tsvangirai Was Perfectly Correct in Everything She Did

During the funeral of the late MDC leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, there were several occasions when the media alleged scandal when there was none. In my opinion the real scandal was the reporters flaunting their ignorance of the late leader's culture, ChiKaranga (Shona culture).

Many of the events that were alleged to be scandals were cultural perfect and sound. The real problem was reporters trying to interpret events in Western cultural context. Tsvangira's family conducted proceedings according to Shona culture as is normal in rural Zimbabwe.

Aspects of Western culture such as prayers and the presence of church ministers are accommodated, but the foundation of everything done is paChikaranga chedu (according to our Chikaranga).

Thus below I will explain how Gogo Tsvangirai's alleged ban of Elizabeth (Tsvangirai's third wife), her refusal to leave the hearse tosit at the 'high table' and Elizabeth's travelling by road, while Susan's family member rode on the helicopter provided, were not scandalous in any manner.

The only scandal was Chamisa trying to commandeer proceedings ahead of the family. I will not bother with the MDC trying to turn the Humanikwa village into a boxing stadium. That has got nothing to do with the funeral proceedings. Or them trying to make a pyre for Thokozani Khupe out of one of the huts at the Tsvangirai homestead. (How would Thoko of Arc sound in history books? Or should it be Thoko of Buhera?)

Introducing ChiKaranga in Five Minutes

ChiKaranga or Shona culture has some very strong procedural tenets at important functions such as funeral. There are prescriptions on who gets officially informed when, for what reason, and using what method. If one of those to be informed has got grievances they can hold up proceedings while their grievances are addressed.

I am going to do my best to summarise practises at a funeral. Practises may vary from clan to clan and region to region but the general outline is very similar.

I come from Chikomba district (Chivhu) next to Buhera district where Tsvangirai comes from. Chikomba is part of Uhera (Land of the Hera clan) from which the name Buhera is derived. I can therefore safely say cultural practises in my home area are very very close to those in Tsvangirai's home area if not exactly the same.

When a family man dies (saimba) his immediate family (present wife and children) are expected to inform their elders. The most senior member of the clan (may be the father, uncles, grand-uncles or an elder cousin) is then expected to guide proceedings.

No decision is made by an individual, so this person is primarily expected to call dare remusha (family council) which will guide proceedings. The most senior clan member presides over this council and if disputes arise that member is expected to have a final say.

However let me stress that decisions are expected to be by consensus not by decree. If the biological parents of the deceased are alive, the family council defers to them in case of disputes. The council act as advisers to the parents not as imposers of decisions.

Even local traditional leaders such as (in order of rank) Sabhuku, Ishe, Mambo or Changamire (roughly English equivalents are Headman, Chief, King, Emperor)) defer to the family council. They only offer advice especially on local taboos of the region. Normally the Headman is present at every funeral.

The family council are allowed, in fact expected, to do things according to their clan traditions. The clan is roughly defined by totem (mutupo) but in practise closest members of the extended family (brothers, sisters, cousins, uncles and aunts) make the final decisions. Ideally nothing is done without consulting the family council.

Once the family council has gathered (or those members able to be present) they are expected to do certain things in an officially manner.

They have to officially inform family in-laws, that is the clan where deceased's mother comes from, in this case Mbuya Tsvangirai's clan.

The deceased's own in-laws, that is ALL families he has ever paid roora (dowry) to, also have to be officially informed. In other words the families of his past and present wives.

These families are given equal status. However in most cases families whose daughters have born the deceased children are treated with extra care. Shona culture (ChiKaranga) worships Mwari. Ancestors are an important of the communication channels to Him.

Those families whose daughters have children with the deceased are expected to make sure their own ancestral rites are done properly so that children of the deceased do not face ngozi (vengeful spirits) from the mother's side in future. That does not mean those without children are discarded. They are also treated well less they become ngozi upon the entire clan.

By the way, Mwari has got absolutely nothing to do with Jehovah and the association comes from a disputed mistranslation of the bible by missionaries.

At the rural home the body lies in state for one night in the kitchen hut of the senior wife (vahosi) no matter this wife is dead or no longer living in the village.

Besides the in-laws local traditional leaders are also officially informed.

The practice of officially sending word to someone is called kutumira shoko. It may involve physically sending a family member to the person or family to be informed. Usually they take with them a small token. In modern times some people expect this token to be cash sufficient for bus-fare but that is not a traditional requirement.

In Tsvangirai's case official word would have been send to the Zvaipa family (his mother's clan), Mhundwa family (his first wife's clan), the Karimatsenga family (Locardia's family) and the Macheka family (his current wife's clan).

As we say in Shona, "Pafa munhu hapashaikwi marehwarehwa" (Where somebody has died you will always get talking and dramatics).

The other important thing is that once members of these in-law clans have arrived, they are expected to be officially given accommodation. That practice is called "kuratidza vanatezvara imba yavo" (showing the in-laws their accommodation).

Depending on the wealth and configuration of the deceased's home and village, this may be a room in a building, or a separate homestead such as a cousin's homestead nearby.

No distinction is made among in-laws present and they are expected to share the accommodation. If several rooms are available the bereaved clan does not dictate who goes in which room, rather the in-laws may allocate the available rooms among themselves, which is almost always done by gender.

During the funeral itself all the in-laws and traditional leaders are officially informed ahead of the general public by the family council before an important step is taken.

That usually involves sending a nephew (muzukuru) to the respective accommodations who presents the word in a proper ceremonial manner. That usually amounts to adopting appropriate physical posture (kneeling or squatting), clapping of the hands and addressing the intended recipients by their totems.

The messenger is expected to return with official word to the family council which is usually "tazvinzwa itai henyu" (we have heard you, go ahead) but might be a reminder of an important rite that has been skipped.

There are many and intricate rites involved in burying a person ranging from who decides where to dig the grave (kutema rukaha), how and by whom the body is washed, certain plants and herbs may be placed in the grave.

The people who handle the body are dictated by protocol. There are also strict protocols on who accompanies a body while it is being transported. There is even rules on who sits towards the head, who sits towards the legs who sits on the right and who sits on the left.

The MDC as a party and its leaders would have had no official role in terms of Shona culture. They would belong to a group termed madzisahwira (friends). They are always given respect, often signified by being supplied with their own pot (or pots) of beer (hari yemadzisahwira). However they are not expected to interfere with proceedings or give themselves precedence over clan members.

Often the friends are dealt with through a representative of which it appears to me that the Tsvangirai clan recognised Thokozani Khupe as the representative. In normal cases that would mean word would be exchanged with the MDC through her. If anything stopped that from happening it is the MDC's own infighting and the Tsvangirai family cannot be blamed for that.

You may have had family members trying to push agendas outside and without the authority of the family council (dare remusha) but that is part of the marehwarehwa (pointless talking) that I mentioned earlier. ChiKaranga simply brushes dramatics and noise aside. It would have been a crisis if burial had been delayed by a day or more over a dispute.

Otherwise judging by the timeline, despite the marehwarehwa zvinhu zvakafamba zvakanaka (things went well despite the talking and dramatics).

I have tried my best to summarise ChiKaranga with respect to funerals. Now let me try to explain specific events that have been reported as scandalous by the media but make perfect sense in terms of culture.

Mbuya Tsvangirai's 'Ban' of Elizabeth and Chamisa

The claim that Tsvangirai's mother wanted to hang herself is not scandalous at all in terms of Shona culture. The statement that gave rise to this frenzy began with the exact words "Udza vanasekuru vako kuti ..." (Go and tell your uncles that ....).

It is clear she was addressing a nephew of the Tsvangirai clan asking him to take her message to dare rekwaTsvangirai (Tsvangirai family council). The threat to hang herself, as well as banging her mudonzvo (walking stick) on the floor, would have been meant to convey the gravity of her grievance to the family council.

In terms of culture Mbuya Tsvangirai acted perfectly she sent an appropriate messenger to the appropriate forum. What would have been unseemly is if Ambuya herself had told Elizabeth to leave, or whacked her daughter-in-law with her stick or stood in the middle of the yard shouting, something called kumira pachivanze in Shona.

By requesting the family council to address her grievances she acted in a mature and expected manner.

In terms of protocol the family council would have investigated the matter and addressed it. I am convinced that was done. They could have asked Elizabeth to apologise, pay a small token fine, or simply given Mbuya Tsvangirai an explanation.

Mbuya's Refusal To Leave the Hearse

Let me point out that a sidetrack that is ignored by media but is very much present in everyday life is witchcraft.

We all know people are murdered for body parts with albinos being specifically targeted in East Central Africa. People also do steal parts from bodies of people who die naturally. There have been several cases of mortuary workers caught selling body parts in several countries in Africa.

The body parts stolen for witchcraft purposes are not always gory and bloody items, but sometimes seemingly benign items like a little bit of hair, or nail clippings. In some cases people may simply wipe fluids from the body with cloth.

Therefore some protocols are maintained to prevent the body from being desecrated by people who want to steal its parts. When the mother accompanies the body during transportation, she would also be watching closely that nobody steals even a hair lock or a fingernail from the body.

Remember in rural areas deceased people are often transported in scotch-carts and some families cannot even afford proper coffins. So watching the body practically means not straying far from the means of transport even for a moment.

Tsvangirai's mother acted very wisely in not allowing herself to be distracted by being made to sit at a high-table leaving her son's body unattended. It would have been extremely scandalous, in Shona culture, for a mother to leave her child's body unattended to go and enjoy some good food and public limelight.

How would she explain to her own clan and the Tsvangirai clan if were to be later found that a little bit of hair had been shaved off the deceased during transportation. She would be the laughing stock of the village for years.

Elizabeth Travelling By Road

As mentioned earlier a man's in-laws are all the families he has ever paid roora to. In addition ChiKaranga stresses the welfare of children. Therefore when a person dies a sarapavana (the one who looks after the children) is always nominated. Such a person would have been appointed when Tsvangirai's first wife, Susan died.

That person is expected to fill in the role that Susan would have played during ceremonies and rites. Lest some misunderstand me that person is not an inherited wife.

In an interview with the Herald Tsvangirai's brother explained that members of the Mhundwa family (Susan's family) demanded that one of them accompany the body to his rural home. That person would have been this fill-in mother for the late wife's children or someone the family nominated for the day.

The demand would have been presented to the Tsvangirai family council who would have sought a way to accommodate it without causing a scene. According to his brother, they asked Elizabeth that since she had accompanied the body from Johannesburg to Harare, she could let the Mhundwa family's nominee accompany the body to Buhera.

Again this is a culturally very sound and diplomatic way of dealing with the situation. That is give the contenting families turns in filling a cultural role.

Keep in mind that a member of the Mhundwa family would be expected to open the late Susan's kitchen hut for the body to lie in state when it got to Buhera. The fact is she was Morgan's senior wife, vahosi. The Tsvangirai family would have considered that when dealing with the matter of who accompanies the body to Buhera.

Dai vakasiya vekwaMhundwa vainovhurirwa nani imba. If they left behind Susan's family members who was going to open her kitchen for the body to lie in state.

The Herald also reported that Elizabeth's family had been "given a room". Thus the Macheka clan where given accommodation (vakaratidzwa imba) by the Tsvangirai clan as per custom.

That means the Tsvangirai clan fully recognise the Machekas as their in-laws. Therefore paChiKaranga (in terms of Shona culture) there was no affront to Elizabeth from the Tsvangirai clan. What the media focused upon was just marehwarehwa.

The Chamisa Hearse Hijack

One last controversy that happened was when Nelson Chamisa, in his claimed capacity as MDC president, apparently commanded that the hearse carrying Tsvangirai's body be driven to a school ground where party supporters were gathered.

According to news reports he spend thirty minutes arguing one of Tsvangirai's brothers, who explained that the family where not done with their rites and needed to properly in form their in-laws.

As I explained above in-laws (vana tezvara) are very highly respected and are officially informed of every step taken by the deceased's family. What this means is that the Tsvangirai family council meets and sends an official messenger to the accommodation they would have provided for the in-laws. Carrying the body from the room where it is housed, to the body is one such important step.

This is normally the kitchen hut that belongs to the first wife, no matter she is dead. Therefore it is critical to inform her family. However all in-laws, the families of Tsvangirai's wives and that of his mother, are officially informed.

The council would wait for the messenger to come back from all families with a reply before proceeding. It is considered an insult to proceed without informing the in-laws. Worse than throwing a shoe in Iraq.

Chamisa's placing himself ahead of the family council is considered highly scandalous in culturally conservative rural Zimbabwe. So much that some Zanu-PF supporters gloated that they no longer needed to campaign in Buhera as Chamisa had done the job for them.

Madzisahwira (friends) are expected to never try and and dictate to the family at a cultural function like a funeral. Worse still madzisahwira are not expected to torch huts especially that of the deceased's mother.

That is tantamount to witchcraft. Kuroya chaiko. I am sure by now there is quite a number of unsavoury speculative theories about what Chamisa wanted to do with the body doing the rounds in rural Zimbabwe.




Sunday 18 February 2018

Mbuya Manyonda is Tsvangirai's Mother. Fulstop nga.

What insult! What afront! Maiwe!

Do the  people who are busy making the argument that Mbuya Manyonda, is not Tsvangirai's real mother have something in the containers on their shoulders or are they carrying empty calabashes? I ask this question especially of those who were brought up in the ChiKaranga culture. Or to put it in colonially doctored context, Shona culture.

It is as if my mother's niece or sister is at my funeral and then someone says, "Havasi mai vacho chaivo chaivo." You will be inviting me to jump out of the coffin and give you a mighty clap. Mbama!

Speaking as someone who is absolutely proud of my culture, I want to make it very clear that Mbuya Manyonda is perfectly within her rights to say what she wants at the funeral of HER SON. Mwana wavo. Even her nieces have the right to speak in the role of Tsvangirai's mother, no questions asked.

Those who want to adopt English culture and hold it with a long handle like a torn basket, are just exhibiting the extend of their colonial brainwashing.

Please note, I have not said anything regarding the reasons why she said what she said. I do not care about them and I do not want to know about them. They are irrelevant to the fact that Mbuya Manyonda ndimai va Morgan CHAIVO CHAIVO!

Let me say in terms of MY CULTURE which I believe is also Mbuya Manyonda's culture, there are certain roles that relatives such as vakuwasha, vana and varoora (sons-in-law, children and daughters-in-law) are expected to fulfill. Elders are perfectly within their rights to declare those who fail to fulfil those roles persona non grata. Let me add I do not know the reasons for Mai vaTsvangirai's sentiments therefore I am not going to go deeper into the topic.

Up to now I have not mentioned the MDC. Neither did Mbuya Manyonda mention the party. She mentioned her daughter-in-law (muroora wavo) and Chamisa. As to why Chamisa is being mentioned in the affairs of the Tsvangirai family, I do not know and I do not want to speculate.

I will also not presume it could only be to do with the MDC and its succession circus. It could be for other reasons as well. There is no cultural reason why Tsvangirai mother (Mai vake chaivo chaivo paChikaranga chedu) would involve herself in the party's affairs. Therefore it is very unlikely that her mention of Chamisa has something to do with his rather acrobatic leap for power.

The MDC should stop trying to impose itself on the affairs of the Tsvangirai family because of its dismal failure to manage its succession matters. They should go back to their membership for them to democratically elect their leadership and not expect the late leader's family to ordain a successor for them. Their antics so far suggest that almost their entire leadership have no clue what democracy is.

Let me take off my cultural hat and put on my hat as a liberal democrat. It no point in democracy, whether representative or direct democracy, is a person chosen for whatever role on the basis of perception or selection by an outgoing leader. I person is chosen through a fair and equitable process in which all the constituents are given an opportunity to be represented.

The constituents of a party are the membership and in terms of the MDC constitution the representative body is congress not the Tsvangirai family or social media commentators like me.