Burned at her garden gate

AN ELDERLY woman from Ximausa village near Giyani was doused with petrol and set alight on Sunday by a mob accusing her of being a witch.

The woman, Mamayila Nkuna (64), was reportedly on her way home after having visited a nearby family where she had gone to clear her name. She had been accused of bewitching a boy in the family.

While she was away from home, the mob apparently petrol-bombed her home. Her grandson, Mandla Masingi, said Nkuna was a few steps away from her home when the violent mob caught up with her and set her alight. “She was near the gate when she collapsed, screaming for help. They (the mob) watched her die as they gathered around her and sang struggle songs,” he recalled. He said he and the rest of the family who were at home could not even run to help her as they were afraid of being torched as well.

The boy who she was accused of having bewitched apparently committed suicide and was buried last week. His suicide was the third suicide by a young person in the village.

According to the headman in the village, Khasele Golele, what angered the community was that these young people who committed suicide all lived in the woman’s vicinity, with one living just a house away from her.

“The community started off by contributing R10 each, which they used to consult a traditional healer who apparently told them that it was two people, a man and a woman, who were behind these deaths,” Golele explained.

“Although the traditional healer did not specify the names of individuals involved, the community had already concluded that the deceased was guilty,” he said.

He said people took the law into their own hands despite his warnings earlier on in the day not to do so. “I talked to them in front of the police after I heard about their plan, but they still went ahead and did it,” he said.

By Monday, the mob was still active despite the police’s raid the previous night, during which some of the alleged key members of the mob were arrested. Some young people could be heard singing and shouting that they wanted to get hold of the man involved.

Provincial police spokesperson Hangwani Mulaudzi said 19 people had been arrested in connection with the incident. “Those who we have arrested so far are mostly young men and women. We expect more arrests soon,” he said.