ZVISHAVANE 1. CONSTITUENCY: ZVISHAVANE 2. PROVINCE: MIDLANDS 3. VENUE: VUGWI CLINIC 4. DATE: 22 JANUARY 2010 5. PARTICIPANTS: No.: 53 Sex: 54% female Age: 19–76; average 42 years From: church leaders, youths, women, political activists, traditional leaders, village heads and government employees. 6. RECOMMENDATIONS i. Truth recovery • Women have suffered much in the previous years and the national courts failed to serve effectively as institutions of truth recovery. The patriarchal nature of the traditional courts is not very encouraging. As a result, most women continue to suffer abuses silently, even at family level. Women need an opportunity to tell their stories as women as opposed to being lumped together with everybody else [women’s group]. ii. Institutional reform a. The local courts • There is a need for institutional reform, especially of the local courts and the civil service ministries responsible for issuing national documents. Local courts are male-dominated, and that makes it difficult for women to tell their stories as some of the subjects will be too sensitive for a male audience. Male insensitivity was also reflected in the office that issues registration documents. These offices are insensitive to women’s issues, as they continue to insist that a mother intending to obtain a birth certificate for her child must bring the father of the child. This is not always possible as some women may be divorced [women’s group]. • Despite the patriarchal nature of the traditional system, the existence of traditional leaders is just in name because they have no power to make legally enforceable decisions. While the integrity of the traditional leadership is compromised by politics, there is potential for reform to enable the traditional leaders to serve their communities effectively [traditional leaders]. b. The security systems • Corruption is a menace, and it has transformed the police force into a “criminal force”. Criminals are moving around, bragging that the law will never find them [women’s group]. • Instead of focusing on the criminals, the police interfere with the peaceful activities of the churches [church representatives]. Taking Transitional Justice to the People – Outreach Report 121