Social unrest over incest cases

ON July 30, 2023, Zimbabwe and the rest of the world, woke up to shocking news that Tonderai Muchimwe of Mafararikwa village in Marange had sprinkled petrol on the house of his niece before setting it ablaze.

The fire led to the death of Tonderai himself. It also claimed the lives of Ashton (12), Quinton (7), Tamari (5) and Takunda Mundoko (14).

According to a police statement, the incident began when Tonderai forcibly entered the room where his niece Violet Muchimwe (35) and her four children were sleeping.

Tonderai was a younger brother of Violet’s father.

Armed with a knife, he demanded to be intimate with his niece, leading to a violent struggle. Violet fled the room, leaving her children behind. Tonderai subsequently set alight the house, resulting in the tragedy.

Neighbours and close relatives revealed to our Manicaland Bureau that Violet and her uncle had been in an incestuous relationship for the past three years. This was not the first time a shocking case of incest was reported in the area.

In 2011, a Marange man was ordered by Chief Bernard Marange to pay two beasts after he sexually abused and impregnated his 14-year-old daughter. Some eight years later, Zekias Mukurachaza (32) and his stepdaughter Macloline Garira (18), of Marange, were initially sentenced to eight months in jail each after they were convicted of having an incestuous relationship in 2017 that resulted in the birth of a child. They were eventually ordered to each perform 210 hours of unpaid work.

Incest cases are, however, not only confined to Marange.

In 2009, Tavonga Tazvigwira, of Tazvigwira village in Chief Mapanzure area, Masvingo, and her father Chamunorwa Tazvigwira, were arrested for incest following a relationship that resulted in five children.

Tavonga was given a non-custodial sentence, with her father getting a two-year jail term.

In recent months, there has been a notable increase in the number of cases in which family members were brought before the courts for engaging in incestuous relationships.

Chief Zimunya (born Kiven Bvirindi) said incestuous cases are rampant in his area. In one of the cases that were brought to his attention, a man impregnated his sister.

The other case involved a father and his daughter.

According to the traditional leader, on average, 10 or more cases involving incest are brought before his courts each year.

Under the radar

Information gathered by The Sunday Mail Society revealed that, for various reasons, the majority of such cases are not reported.

At times, incest cases are being heard at traditional courts in remote rural outposts.

Also, according to both the police and traditional leaders, such cases are usually swept under the carpet by families.

“Incest is rampant in areas of my jurisdiction. The sad thing is that such cases are not reported since my subjects know that I do not tolerate such abominations. Also, the majority of such cases are swept under the carpet, making it difficult for me to conclude whether they are on the increase or not,” said Chief Seke (born Stanley Chimanikire).

Harare provincial police spokesperson Inspector Luckmore Chakanza said they are yet to record a single case this year but that did not mean such incidents are not happening.

“I think, for various reasons, such cases are rarely reported to the police in urban areas. Families might actually be sweeping such cases under the carpet,” Inspector Chakanza said.

Appalling

Dr Mavis Mandivheyi, a sociologist, explained why cases are often not reported.

“Culturally, these are shameful acts that attract stigmatisation. For these reasons, very few people are willing to come forward and report,” notes Dr Mandivheyi.

She argued the culture of protecting perpetrators for the sake of preserving family reputations leaves victims helpless.

Two years back, a 46-year-old man from Siambizi area under Chief Makoma in Binga, Matabeleland North province, committed suicide after he was accused of impregnating his 12-year-old stepdaughter.

Circumstances were that the deceased’s stepdaughter went to the police and reported that she had been raped by one of the villagers, only identified as Mugande.

The following day, the stepdaughter went back to the police station and changed the statement, claiming it was her stepfather who had raped her.

When the police went to the victim’s home with the intention of arresting the alleged perpetrator, they were shocked to discover the accused’s lifeless body hanging from his bedroom hut

Traditionalist Sekuru Dziva (real name Oliver Mufambisi) blamed the rise in the number of incest cases to excessive love of money.

According to Sekuru Dziva, such cases usually involve fathers and daughters, brothers and sisters.

Biological effects

According to online sources, research has proven that children born out of incestuous relationships, especially involving first-degree relatives, tend to have severe birth defects.

Part of the online research findings read: “Forty-two percent of them were born with severe birth defects or suffered early death and another 11 percent mildly impaired mentally.”

According to the research findings, the children who were born out of first-degree relationships had either autosomal recessive disorders, congenital physical malformations or severe intellectual deficits.