Enough with muti killings

The continued ritual killings at Limpopo’s Vhembe district should concern all South Africans, particularly those concerned about the abuse and victimisation of women and children in our society.

Last week I wrote a feature article out of my personal concern around these killings that had been haunting our democratic country for so long but with no action from our authorities – despite the fact that they are aware of it.

There is no justification for the murdering of women and children merely for the purpose of removing their private parts and other organs. Despite a task team that was appointed 15 years ago, nothing was had been done.

Instead, our government that publicly proclaims to be championing the fight against gender-based violence and abuse of children, particularly girls, is folding its arms to the barbaric murders.

These massacres have escalated to the level where the people in the villages of Vhembe in former Venda are taking the law into their own hands out of frustration at the lack of state action. The suspected perpetrators are being targeted and their homes torched.

On the other hand, women, children and in a few instances, men in Vhembe, Mopani, Makhado and surrounding villages, live in fear of being the next targets of kidnappings for the purpose of having their body parts sliced off.

Women and children disappear without trace or those found would be dead with their body parts missing. The police appeared not only to have grown comfortable with the situation, but they are dodgy about what is happening – some even avoiding to talk to journalists about the matter.

Their attitude seems to reinforce the perception that they are complicit to the crimes. Locals like community leader Phumudzo Mukhwathi and an expert, Dr Alunamutwe Rannditsheni – who did an in-depth investigation of this issue – are concerned about the alleged police lack of interest in investigating and bringing perpetrators to book.

They claim there had been no progress in the probes – and cases were often bungled. Police statistics do not list ritual murders as such but as part of murders and police allegedly merely recorded these cases as “kidnapping” or “inquest” while the killers are roaming free.

Limpopo police need to be held accountable for this, otherwise they must prove us wrong by arresting the perpetrators.

President Cyril Ramaphosa, who is an undisputed champion of the GBV fight, must visit this area, which happened to be his ancestral home. As his parents were from the area, I am sure he is familiar with the ritual killings in question.

It is appalling that some politicians; business people; traditional leaders; sangomas (traditional healers) and pastors participate in the killings as clients who allegedly purchase the body parts to use as muti to strengthen their status, boost their business sales and attendance at churches, increase following and win votes.

The chopping of body parts is barbarism of the highest order. It needs a joint effort by the police, the community, government, traditional leaders and leaders in the Southern African Development Community since this happens in all the SADC nations.