> Case study / Gokwe, Zimbabwe In Zimbabwean culture, it is believed that, when someone is murdered, the avenging spirit of the dead person often fights for justice, a concept known as ngozi in Shona or Uzimu in Ndebele. The family of the murderer, after being forced by mysterious experiences and misfortunes, agrees to compensate the family of the dead in a ritual known as kuripa ngozi. Usually, such ritual ends the mysteries, enabling the bereaved family to forgive, to heal from the loss and also to help the families concerned to end hostilities. The following is a case study of certain Zimbabwean families that went through the kuripa ngozi ritual in order to find healing: In 2009, Moses Chokuda, who hailed from Gokwe in the Midlands province, was brutally murdered by four men, among them the son of a prominent politician. It was alleged that the violence was politically motivated. Moses’s family refused to bury his remains, demanding that the family of the politician first pay 15 head of cattle and USD15 000. Moses’s corpse remained in the Gokwe District Hospital mortuary for close to three years, as the politician adamantly refused to budge, arguing that the matter was before the courts and that the courts should be allowed to do their job. (http://www.zimbabwesituation.org/?p=9699) According to a local newspaper, namely NewsDay of 26 October 2011 (https://www. newsday.co.zw/2011/10/26/2011-10-26-chokuda-the-man-who-fought-his-ownbattle/), it was alleged that the spirit of Moses was tormenting the family of the politician and that he (the politician) was reportedly often seen by nurses at Gokwe District Hospital where Moses’s body was being kept. In an interview with NewsDay, Moses’s father said: ‘My son is seen alive by those who are linked to his death and I hear he [the dead man] is herding cattle belonging to one of the suspects at a farm’. (http://zimbabweghosts.blogspot.com/2011/02/dead-man-refuses-burial.html) Moses’s mother, who was blind, was distressed, as she said that she had found her eyes in Moses, only for him to be taken away from her through a painful process of being beaten to death. She was also awaiting the day when her son would finally be buried at their homestead. (http://zimbabweghosts.blogspot.com/2011/02/dead-manrefuses-burial.html) According to NewsDay of 26 October 2011, Chief Misheck Njelele of Gokwe finally managed to broker peace talks between the Chokuda and Machaya families over a period of three days, as a result of which the aggrieved family was paid 20 head of cattle and USD15 000 in cash. Following this process, Moses was finally laid to rest, bringing a form of appeasement to him and his family and reconciliation of the Chokudas with the perpetrator’s family. For successful community healing to occur, it is crucial for development practitioners to include the following activities in their initiatives (Wessells & Monteiro, 2004): • Network with traditional leaders and develop good working relations that make it possible to draw on the knowledge and skills of these leaders; • Incorporate information about local beliefs and practices into any training workshops in which participants will be invited to bring to the table their local beliefs and practices; and Module 1: Understanding community healing 7 1