A woman in Murewa stunned a gathering in Munyuki village when she claimed that she and five others had “bewitched” her two late daughters and then presented a piece of meat she falsely alleged was human flesh, as informed to a Murewa magistrate.
The piece of meat was subjected to forensic tests which determined that it did not come from a human being or any domestic animal.
Grace Kasambarare, aged 23, admitted to trying to practice witchcraft. She was sentenced to a 10-month jail term on Thursday last week by Magistrate Mr. S. Kudya after being found guilty on five counts of violating the Witchcraft Suppression Act by falsely accusing the other five individuals of being witches and wizards.
According to the agreed-upon facts presented in court by Mr. Titus Taruvinga, representing the State, Kasambarare had three children, two of whom passed away on consecutive dates in December of the previous year.
On May 15 of this year, Kasambarare alleged in front of a gathering and her husband that she and five others, who were her witchcraft associates, were responsible for the deaths of her seven-year-old and five-year-old children due to “non-natural” causes.
She then produced a piece of meat that she claimed the six of them had obtained from an unidentified deceased person.
Following her statement, Kasambarare’s husband reported the matter to the police. The other five individuals refuted the allegations of being witches and wizards as stated by Kasambarare.
In delivering the sentence, the magistrate considered as mitigating the fact that Kasambarare pleaded guilty and displayed contrition. In her mitigation, she told the court that she had been “possessed by a demon” which compelled her to perform her witchcraft acts. However, the “demon” had since been removed. The magistrate noted that her false claims of witchcraft caused Kasambarare shame within her community and also led to her legal troubles, as the law prohibited her from accusing others.
Meanwhile, the police in Harare have stated that there is no truth to the rumor that three individuals were caught eating human flesh at Highfield Cemetery. The rumor, spread by a drunken man, incited numerous angry residents who sought to storm the cemetery to apprehend the alleged culprits.
