British Colonialist Cecil Rhodes’s Grave Haunts Zimbabweans

cecil rhodes grave

 

It’s a sacred hill where Zimbabweans have gone for ages to consult their ancestors.

A short trek is required to reach the grave, which is located on a high hill surrounded by massive boulders rounded by erosion.

The stones are covered in light green aniseed and orange lichens that glow when touched by the sun.

It’s also where the legendary British coloniser Cecil John Rhodes decided to be buried.

Rhodes, often portrayed as a philanthropist, envisioned a British Africa from Cape Town to Cairo, with Queen Victoria’s consent.

“I don’t think history should be tampered with, it’s history, and he requested to be here so I think that’s where he should stay. ” saidNicky Johnson, a visitor.

After carving out swaths of land for the British empire, the white supremacist died more than 120 years ago in South Africa at the age of 48.

Modern Zambia and Zimbabwe were included in the land grab, which was eventually dubbed Rhodesia in his honor.

Part of the younger generation wishes to have his remains removed in order to rid the country of the remaining remnants of colonialism.

Cynthia Marangwanda, 37, of Harare, is furious over the existence of Rhodes’s burial.

She believes he chose that location because he was aware of its spiritual significance to the locals.

“First and foremost Matobo in itself is such a beautiful landscape it doesn’t need this colonial grave, honestly.” she said.

“He chooses to go where we talk to our creator and bury himself there. You know… It was more like a spiritual colonisation which is a great insult to any sane Zimbabwean. ” added Tafadzwa Gwini, co-founder of Rhodes-Must-Fall campaign in Zimbabwe.

But the grave attracts tourists who bring much-needed income for surrounding villages — and many local people oppose any exhumation.

Nestled in the Matobo National Park, his grave is simple, with “Here lie the remains of Cecil John Rhodes” engraved on it.

“For us the Rhodes grave is very important to us, in that it brings the visitors who will see our arts and crafts, that they buy from us and we get some money to send our kids to school and to also get food and clothing. ”

“This grave is not a problem for us. We have other sacred places in the vicinity that allow us to exchange with our ancestors. And basically, these visitors, who have come from far away, also come to talk to their ancestor.” explained Micah Sibanda , resident outside of the Matobo National Park

In neighbouring South Africa, students at the University of Cape Town launched a “Rhodes-Must-Fall” protest in 2015, initially to pull down Rhodes’s statue at the campus.

It later morphed into a global campaign, which saw Oxford University resisting calls to remove a statue of the politician — placing an explanatory panel next to it instead.

 

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