Perpetrators and victims work together to rebuild Mozambique
11 June 2007
Mozambiquians who fought each other for years in a bloody civil war are processing their traumas in a unique manner by rebuilding their country together. This hopeful conclusion is drawn by Dutch-sponsored psychologist and medical anthropologist Victor Igreja following his research into the restoration of social life in Mozambique.
The miserable situation and the need to cooperate after the civil war turned out to be fertile ground for reconciliation between former archenemies in Mozambique. When this civil war ended in 1992, the country was completely destroyed. Many perpetrators and victims came to live in the same villages but the feared continuation of the violence never transpired.
The Mozambiquians who survived the conflict realised that they needed each other to rebuild the country. The former hostile Mozambiquians actively cooperated with each other to forget their war traumas. This is striking because the government still does not recognise the barbarities of the war.
Active partnerships at a local level are helping to soften the suffering caused by the many war traumas, despite the government's failure to recognise the atrocities committed and to set up a policy to facilitate reconciliation and healing.
Legal systems
Interestingly, the traditional local
legal systems in Mozambique are proving to be ideal for solving conflicts
arising from the war. Up until now it had been assumed that this would only be
effective if a national or international body took on this task. Mozambique
does not have such an authority.
Healers
In the Mozambique culture the concept of
remorse between people does not exist. Mozambiquians believe that innocent men
who have been killed revenge themselves by possessing young women. That leads
to the woman developing symptoms that we term post-traumatic stress syndrome. Healers play a major role in the processing of these traumas. They do this by
driving out spirits, so-called Magamba, in a ritualised manner.
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Mozambiquians often process war traumas with the help of prayer healers. These young woman was possessed by a so-called Gamba, a war spirit. (Please state the source when using the photo: B. Dias-Lambranca) |
Civil war
The Mozambiquian civil war started in 1977,
two years after the carnation revolution in which the country declared
independence from Portugal with communist support. The then rulers of the
freedom fighters Front for Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo) were attacked by
the conservative Mozambique Resistance Movement (Renamo). This party was
supported by the apartheid regimes of South Africa and Rhodesia and indirectly
by the United States. A peace agreement was not signed until 1992, after almost
one million people had been killed, 1.7 million had fled abroad and a further 7
million had fled within Mozambique.
Mozambique has the lowest per capita income in the world (USD 1389 in 2005) but the country is rapidly catching up.
Sponsor
Igreja's research was funded by NWO-WOTRO
Science for Global Development. WOTRO focuses on funding innovative scientific
research into developmental issues, in particular sustainable development and
poverty alleviation. In doing this, WOTRO wants to strengthen the cooperation
with the Dutch government, development organisations and international research
institutes. A large part of WOTRO's funding comes from the Dutch Ministry of
Foreign Affairs.
CV
Victor Igreja was born in Chimoio, Mozambique. He
followed a Masters degree in medical anthropology in Amsterdam, and after this
he accepted a PhD position at Leiden in 2002. Igreja is currently working at
the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities and Social
Sciences in Wassenaar.
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Note for editors, not for publication
For further information please contact:
- Dr V.M.F. Igreja (Leiden University)
- t.: +31(0) 6 1521 0142, vigreja@yahoo.com
- The doctoral thesis was defended on: 5 June 2007
- Supervisor Prof. J.M. Richters
