The ManicaPost
Tendai Gukutikwa
Weekender Reporter
A MUTARE woman last week approached the courts asking for a lifetime protection order against her neighbours.
Sylvia Munhuyi argued that a five-year order will not deter her neighbours from abusing her.
This follows the expiration of a previous order that was granted to Munhuyi against Frankison Riyadhi five years ago.
Munhuyi approached the court with the intention of renewing the expired order, while pleading for the new order to be valid for a lifetime.
“If possible, I would prefer a lifetime protection order because they disregard the five-year order as soon as it expires. My family and l are being abused by these people. They have moved a gear up in their abuses and I cannot take it anymore,” she said.
Munhuyi alleged that Riyadhi and his siblings accuse her of dabbling in witchcraft and causing their mother’s ill-health.
The feuding neighbours appeared before Mutare magistrate, Mr Xavier Chipato.
“Your Worship, their mother is not feeling well and they accuse me of causing her illness. They confronted me and said if their mother dies, they will burn me alive using car tyres,” she said.
Munhuyi further stated that Riyadhi labels her a woman of loose morals.
“At one time, they said that if their mother dies, they will hire assassins to kill me and that their mother’s blood will be on my hands. I do not practise witchcraft and have nothing to do with their mother’s illness, yet they are giving me a torrid time,” she said.
Munhuyi also said the Riyadhi family kills her family’s livestock whenever it strays to their homestead.
“They have killed our countless goats and chickens for straying to their homestead. They had stopped because of the protection order that was granted five years ago, but now that it has expired, they are telling me that even the law cannot stop them from harassing me.
“They do not care if we have visitors or not, they just attack us and as a result my mother and I have lost our dignity within the community. We are labelled witches who want to kill Gogo Riyadhi,” said Munhuyi.
“They go around telling the community that if they associate with us, my mother and l will bewitch them. Community members no longer want to befriend us. It is like we are living in a jungle because nobody wants to associate with my family due to these allegations,” she said, before begging the court to order the Riyadhi and Munhuyi families to consult traditional healers to clear her name.
Riyadhi was in default despite signing the summons.
Mr Chipato granted a protection order in Munhuyi’s favour.
The order will be valid for the next five years and it bars Riyadhi and his family from insulting, assaulting, name calling and breaching Munhuyi’s peace.
