Community shocked as 28 graves are vandalized

Community members of Maname village outside Tshithuthuni in Nzhelele are looking for answers, as they still do not know whether a baboon or an unknown person had vandalised 28 tombstones of their loved ones at the Maname community graveyard.

According to Vhakoma Vho-Florence Tshigabe, the community only became aware of the incident on Sunday, 9 September. “No one can tell what happened or when it happened, because we only became aware of this when we were coming here (the graveyard) to erect a fence,” she said.

“On Saturday, we had a community meeting and some community members were saying it might have been wild animals. Some are saying a person did it, but at the moment we are not sure who or what vandalised the graves. We are hoping that the police will assist and tell us who or what disturbed the peace of our loved ones.”

In addition to the graves in the graveyard, another grave just outside the yard was also vandalised. The grave is covered by a cage with a small triangular opening on the top that a normal-sized baboon cannot fit in. Inside the cage, on top of the grave, is a white piece of concrete which shows footprints. It is unclear whether the footprint is that of a human or a large baboon.

Ms Naledzani Silidi, a community member, said that they were not sure when the graves had been vandalized. She said the graveyard was not used that often.

The Limpopo police service’s spokesperson said that no case had been opened because the police suspected that wild animals had caused the damage.

News - Date: 22 September 2018

Maanda Bele

Maanda  Bele, born and raised in Nzhelele Siloam, studied journalism at the Tshwane University of Technology.

He is passionate about current news and international affairs.

He worked as part of the Zoutnet team as an intern in 2017.

He is currently a freelance journalist specialising in news from the Vhembe district.

Email: [email protected]