An organisation that advocates the use of African traditional religion has petitioned Parliament to consider the merits of expressly including ancestry in the constitutional text and promoting a legal framework that respects and incorporates traditional beliefs.
The organisation, Hweva Association, said it was advocating constitutional recognition of ancestors and ancestral spirits as a trust vested in the nation.
This initiative seeks to enshrine the cultural and spiritual significance of ancestry within the framework of the Zimbabwean Constitution and underscoring its importance as an integral part of the country’s heritage and history.
According to the petition dated April 16, addressed to Clerk of Parliament Kennedy Chokuda, Hweva Association vice-president Vusi Nyamazana said officially recognising ancestors would honour a vital part of Zimbabwean culture and promote national unity by celebrating the nation’s diverse cultural traditions.
“We, African Traditional Religion, presume to approach you and humbly submit for your consideration, our prime and heavy grievance, the manifold incapacities and oppressive disqualifications, attended with great distress to all ranks of African Traditional Religion adherents,” Nyamazana said.
“And through this petition, African Traditional Religion adherents launch out to recover those inestimable natural rights and spiritual values and virtues which they inherited from their ancestors.”
He added that the Zimbabwean Constitution recognised alien cultures which he said was a disgrace.
“The nation of Zimbabwe was founded by our ancestors, who are the owners and custodians of our land. The ancestral spirit forces guided the First and Second Chimurenga but their guidance is disabled for the present.
- ED’s influence will take generations to erase
- Letter from America: Is former president Donald Trump a hero or villain?
- ‘Govt spineless on wetland land barons’
- Govt under attack over banks lending ban
Keep Reading
“We most humbly submit to you that the ancestors, manes and African Traditional Religion adherents in their native land face a worse situation than alien religions, demanding equitable privileges denied to them. This situation is seen as a badge of disgrace and aggravation.
“During the colonial period, Christian missionaries visited the Pioneer Column, viewing the ancestors and manes as detestable aspects of paganism. This visitation cursed the traditional religion, hindering its participation in nation-healing and nation-building. The exclusion of its references in the Constitution discourages its full participation in Zimbabwe’s socio-political cultural development and cultural values,” read the petition.
