MATABELELAND-BASED pressure group, Ibhetshu LikaZulu, says it will continue to erect Gukurahundi plaques at mass graves despite their vandalism by unknown persons.
A number of Gukurahundi plaques have been destroyed by suspected State security agents with the recent vandalism having occurred last month in Matabeleland South.
Ibhetshu LikaZulu secretary-general Mbuso Fuzwayo, however, said they would not be deterred.
“We will continue to put them up; the plaques are a way of memorialisation. The system destroyed the plaque and they are trying to silence the voices of the victims," Fuzwayo said.
“It’s unfortunate because the perpetrator is trying by all means to control the narrative.
“We have reported the vandalism to the police and we have not gotten any help. The police are saying their hands are tied because the high office is responsible for the destruction."
There are a number of unmarked mass graves in the region where victims of the Gukurahundi massacres lie buried.
Researchers say at least 20 000 people were killed in Gukurahundi massacres in Matabeleland and Midlands when the late former President Robert Mugabe unleashed a North Korea-trained militia to quell the alleged dissent.
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Reports indicate that the crackdown targeted his political opponents from Zapu and their supporters. Fuzwayo challenged the government to accept that victims want the graves to be memorialised.
“The government must accept that it is what the victims and survivors want. In the process of trying to get views from the survivors, plaques or memorial halls must be built in various communities," he said.
Traditional leaders have been tasked to lead public hearings into the massacres. The hearings are set to begin next month.
