The Financial Gazette

A Lighter Brew with Maggie Mzumara
“I’ve grown so paranoid, l no longer entertain male relatives around my daughter … the first instance she shows discomfort in her diaper, l am … examining and opening her around to be sure nobody tampered around with her,” wrote one woman reader to me last week responding to the call we made for women to stand and unite against rape. Is this your story too? Are you living in paranoia fearing for the security and safety of your daughters? Do you find you can’t trust males around your daughter? Do you fear even for yourself? Are you, yourself, a survivor of rape?
Were you so traumatised by your experience that you do not want the same for any other girl or woman?  Or are you just plain concerned and appalled by the ever-increasing cases of rape and child molestation and want to help make our communities safer?
If you have answered yes to any of these questions then what are you waiting for? Join other women and mothers and sign up for the Million Mom March Against Rape.
As the Million Mom March Against Rape initiative gains momentum with quite a number of women signing up last week alone from all over the country, there is no doubt that the issue of rape and the feelings evoked resounded in many women across the country. The questions that seem to dominate in the minds of most women is: How can we let this happen?  How can it happen in the way it has been?
The same was also echoed by some grandmothers in Mahusekwa who were captured on Zimbabwe Television (ZTV) over the weekend expressing shock and disgust over the case of the nine-year-old girl who was raped by 17 men.
As neighbours to the raped girl, the Mahusekwa grandmothers are appalled that this would happen right under their noses and they not be aware of it. How could this happen, they ask.
As more women come forward to sign up for the Million Mom March Against Rape the task ahead of us looms large and clear. There is so much ground work and behind the scenes work to be done. We have a job to do, a duty to perform in protection of our girls and women.
And sometimes boys and men too are falling victim to the epidemic of rape that has gripped our society. Whatever the gender, what we are saying as mothers is that enough is enough: we want secure communities.  We are tired of being paranoid and looking over our shoulders and sizing up males in our communities and hom-es.
We want to arrest this trend and not continue sitting on our laurels and wait for other people to make things right for us. If it is to be, it is up to us. We know what kind of world we want and only we can define it for ourselves.
“l would love to join the Million Mom March and so many more mothers and sisters who demand an end to rape. I want to break the silence and take charge of the security of my daughter. I am tired of the fear and l want to shout it out at the top of my voice. I know there are so many more women like me out there and l want to join them in this worthy cause…” said one woman.
As women we have no illusions about the challenges ahead. Pitted against us are three forces. The justice system, the education system and the traditional healing sector are failing us. The justice system apparently places more value on cattle than our girls and women. While cattle rustlers grow old in jail, rapists are getting away with “murder” serving only an insulting few years and returning to society to repeat the same offense. The school system needs to teach more around these issues. When one teenager raped a minor girl a few weeks ago, his defence was that he had no idea that they are not allowed to sleep with girls under 16 years of age. We need all to be schooled on what it means that someone is minor, what are the repercussions.
Thirdly and possibly the root of most of these crimes is that these rapes are because of prescriptions by n’angas / traditional healers. These traditional healers need to be interrogated by relevant authorities on these prescriptions. What exactly are they telling their “patients” to do? Is it true that they are encouraging the rape of one-month-old babies? Grandmothers of 93?  Is that kind of healing evidence-based?
Are they aware of the harm this is causing?  Should it be so?
The hope is also that, as the constitution making process goes on, our wishes and aspirations in the world we live can also be taken on board.
As women and mothers of the nation, we have got no illusions about what we are setting out to do with the Million Mom March. Couched in the greater fight against violence against women and girls, the Million Mom March Against Rape provides a platform for women to come together, voice their concerns, and influence the environment they live in, in the hope of making some positive impact on our society and lives.
Getting a million of us to get together and stand up against rape is no small task . We need the numbers, we need more and more women to come up from all over the country and even Zimbabwean women in the diaspora to stand up in solidarity with us here.
Our strength lies in numbers. We need individuals, we need organisations, we need government, we need everyone we can get to stand with us.  We need all the support we can get.
If you would like to join other women and mothers and be part of the Million Mom March Against Rape, write to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or text your name and contact details to 0913 063 553.

l Maggie Mzumara is        an internationally-recognised media, communication and development consultant. She is also a motivational speaker and a seasoned MC. She can    be reached on This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . For more, visit www.maggiemzumara.com

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