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Many clients were in physical pain, hungry and exhausted and this has to be taken into account
when considering the provision of longer term clinical services. The clinical services cannot be
run in isolation and would need to link up with other organisations who would address the
physical needs of the clients.
The social impact of OVT is enormous within the Zimbabwean culture. Clients expressed
feelings of both desperation and confusion as to how young people could beat up older people
and in some cases people from their own village. One client did not know if he could return to his
home as it had been his neighbour’s children who had been involved in his physical torture.
Another client says, “When I am alone and sleep I think a lot about this fateful event,
especially the fact that many women saw me naked. This pains me a lot and if I think
about it I don’t feel alright. I reach a point whereby I think that before going through such
an ordeal I should have killed myself”. The individual’s experience of torture is even greater
when seen within the social context.
When asked what was helping the clients cope many responded that prayer and a belief in God
kept them going. Also, being with others who believed in the same political cause was very
supportive. Many expressed a desire for revenge and believed that with revenge their own
healing could take place.
One client said, “ In my mind I feel hurt. If I were to be given a gun and go back to my rural
home, I would have killed someone there. I would have shot someone. I suffered a lot. It
was terrible. I experienced horror.”
Another client also expressed how he felt revenge would help: “I feel anger, pain, bitter and so
forth has been reduced by two percent because I still want revenge. If I could go back to
revenge that will settle everything.”
This is a concern as it contributes to the repetition of the violence.
Beliefs
A significant belief system was evident in the transcripts. A majority of the men in the client group
felt that men should be strong and should provide for and protect their families. This created
extreme concern and guilt about being responsible for the desperate situation. They felt
burdened and worried about their family’s future.
AMANI Trust: At the boiling point of the pain. Report of a pilot study examining the eficacy of psychotherapy for torture
survivors.