Lost Jewish tribe 'found in Zimbabwe'
By Steve Vickers
BBC News, Harare
The Lemba people of Zimbabwe and South Africa may look like their compatriots, but they follow a very different set of customs and traditions.
They do not eat pork, they practise male circumcision, they ritually slaughter their animals, some of their men wear skull caps and they put the Star of David on their gravestones.
Their oral traditions claim that their ancestors were Jews who fled the Holy Land about 2,500 years ago.
It may sound like another myth of a lost tribe of Israel, but British scientists have carried out DNA tests which have confirmed their Semitic origin.
These tests back up the group's belief that a group of perhaps seven men married African women and settled on the continent. The Lemba, who number perhaps 80,000, live in central Zimbabwe and the north of South Africa.
And they also have a prized religious artefact that they say connects them to their Jewish ancestry - a replica of the Biblical Ark of the Covenant known as the ngoma lungundu, meaning "the drum that thunders".
The object went on display recently at a Harare museum to much fanfare, and instilled pride in many of the Lemba.
"For me it's the starting point," says religious singer Fungisai Zvakavapano-Mashavave.
"Very few people knew about us and this is the time to come out. I'm very proud to realise that we have a rich culture and I'm proud to be a Lemba.
"We have been a very secretive people, because we believe we are a special people."
Religion vs culture
The Lemba have many customs and regulations that tally with Jewish tradition.
They wear skull caps, practise circumcision, which is not a tradition for most Zimbabweans, avoid eating pork and food with animal blood, and have 12 tribes.
“ Many people say that the story is far-fetched, but the oral traditions of the Lemba have been backed up by science ”
Tudor Parfitt University of London
They slaughter animals in the same way as Jewish people, and they put the Jewish Star of David on their tombstones.
Members of the priestly clan of the Lemba, known as the Buba, were even discovered to have a genetic element also found among the Jewish priestly line.
"This was amazing," said Prof Tudor Parfitt, from the University of London.
"It looks as if the Jewish priesthood continued in the West by people called Cohen, and in same way it was continued by the priestly clan of the Lemba.
"They have a common ancestor who geneticists say lived about 3,000 years ago somewhere in north Arabia, which is the time of Moses and Aaron when the Jewish priesthood started."
Prof Parfitt is a world-renowned expert, having spent 20 years researching the Lemba, and living with them for six months.
The Lemba have a sacred prayer language which is a mixture of Hebrew and Arabic, pointing to their roots in Israel and Yemen.
Despite their ties to Judaism, many of the Lemba in Zimbabwe are Christians, while some are Muslims.
"Christianity is my religion, and Judaism is my culture," explains Perez Hamandishe, a pastor and member of parliament from the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).
Despite their centuries-old traditions, some younger Lemba are taking a more liberal view.
"In the old days you didn't marry a non-Lemba, but these days we interact with others," says Alex Makotore, son of the late Chief Mposi from the Lemba "headquarters" in Mberengwa.
"I feel special in my heart but not in front of others such that I'm separated from them. Culture is dynamic."
Crowds
The oral traditions of the Lemba say that the ngoma lungundu is the Biblical wooden Ark made by Moses, and that centuries ago a small group of men began a long journey carrying it from Yemen to southern Africa.
“ Hearing from those professors in Harare and seeing the ngoma makes it clear that we are a great people and I'm very proud ”
David Maramwidze Lemba elder
The object went missing during the 1970s and was eventually rediscovered in Harare in 2007 by Prof Parfitt.
"Many people say that the story is far-fetched, but the oral traditions of the Lemba have been backed up by science," he says.
Carbon dating shows the ngoma to be nearly 700 years old - pretty ancient, if not as old as Bible stories would suggest.
But Prof Parfitt says this is because the ngoma was used in battles, and would explode and be rebuilt.
The ngoma now on display was a replica, he says, possibly built from the remains of the original.
"So it's the closest descendant of the Ark that we know of," Prof Parfitt says.
Large crowds came to see the unveiling of the ngoma and to attend lectures on the identity of the Lemba.
For David Maramwidze, an elder in his village, the discovery of the ngoma has been a defining moment.
"Hearing from those professors in Harare and seeing the ngoma makes it clear that we are a great people and I'm very proud," he says.
"I heard about it all my life and it was hard for me to believe, because I had no idea of what it really is.
"I'm still seeing the picture of the ngoma in my mind and it will never come out from my brain. Now we want it to be given back to the Lemba people."
To hear more about the Lemba people, listen to the BBC World Service
programme on Saturday 6 March at 0830 GMT.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/africa/8550614.stm
Published: 2010/03/08 11:15:10 GMT
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Sunday, March 21, 2010
A Call For Peace
I was asked to post this article, written by a great friend and colleague in Nigeria...
Some great philosopher once said “The only thing necessary for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing” I believe in this quote so much that I write it down and say it whatever chance I get. It also influences the way I live, work and relate to those around me, speaking out against injustice and influencing my own small way my immediate spheres of influence by what I do and what I say. At least I try to the best way I can.
This way of thinking was severely tested many times and on many occasions and in many ways but nothing prepared me for what I witnessed on the morning of Monday the 15th of March when on my way to work contemplating a busy hospital schedule that involves saving lives. Already despondent about all the brutality in the land, I was very unfortunate to witness the last moments of a hard working family man, a taxi driver brutally chased by a mob killed and burnt accused falsely of being a child thief by some motorcyclists that he had an altercation with. It is an experience that I am certain would remain with me for as long as I live. Many good people did nothing that day either from fear, helplessness, and apathy or just not knowing what to do. I still recall the fear in his eyes and his voice as he shouted pleading his innocence trying to flee from the monster of a mob.
The feeling of helplessness that one goes through at moments like this is hard to imagine, looking back it is difficult to have imagined how I could have helped but it still doesn’t make the anguish any less. Sad to think, this is just one victim too many in an existence where life has become so cheap, where people turn into cold blooded killers in a twinkle of an eye. Innocent people are killed every day, people who wake up in the morning like a majority of us with nothing in mind but how to navigate through the rough terrain of existence, feed their families, send their children to school. Even innocent children are not spared in a land where life has become so cheap.
Be it in ethnic clashes, religious clashes, in maternity wards on the roads, in our homes while we sleep. Evil continues to flourish because good men (and women) do nothing. It is time that we think of our roles in the society and what they can do and how best we can do it. Some of us are in a position to do something big, but for those of us who aren’t we can start by showing love and tolerance and peace in not only what we say but what we do. We can talk to our children, our neighbors, our friends and our kinsman. There is too much hate and by doing nothing we may just as well share in the blame.
I just thought I could trade in my stethoscope for the pen today to reach out further in my bid to continue to live by my principles if I am able to convince even one person today then perhaps the anguish I feel will lessen a bit.
Best regards
Dr (Mrs) Yashua Alkali Hamza
Sharada, Kano
Some great philosopher once said “The only thing necessary for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing” I believe in this quote so much that I write it down and say it whatever chance I get. It also influences the way I live, work and relate to those around me, speaking out against injustice and influencing my own small way my immediate spheres of influence by what I do and what I say. At least I try to the best way I can.
This way of thinking was severely tested many times and on many occasions and in many ways but nothing prepared me for what I witnessed on the morning of Monday the 15th of March when on my way to work contemplating a busy hospital schedule that involves saving lives. Already despondent about all the brutality in the land, I was very unfortunate to witness the last moments of a hard working family man, a taxi driver brutally chased by a mob killed and burnt accused falsely of being a child thief by some motorcyclists that he had an altercation with. It is an experience that I am certain would remain with me for as long as I live. Many good people did nothing that day either from fear, helplessness, and apathy or just not knowing what to do. I still recall the fear in his eyes and his voice as he shouted pleading his innocence trying to flee from the monster of a mob.
The feeling of helplessness that one goes through at moments like this is hard to imagine, looking back it is difficult to have imagined how I could have helped but it still doesn’t make the anguish any less. Sad to think, this is just one victim too many in an existence where life has become so cheap, where people turn into cold blooded killers in a twinkle of an eye. Innocent people are killed every day, people who wake up in the morning like a majority of us with nothing in mind but how to navigate through the rough terrain of existence, feed their families, send their children to school. Even innocent children are not spared in a land where life has become so cheap.
Be it in ethnic clashes, religious clashes, in maternity wards on the roads, in our homes while we sleep. Evil continues to flourish because good men (and women) do nothing. It is time that we think of our roles in the society and what they can do and how best we can do it. Some of us are in a position to do something big, but for those of us who aren’t we can start by showing love and tolerance and peace in not only what we say but what we do. We can talk to our children, our neighbors, our friends and our kinsman. There is too much hate and by doing nothing we may just as well share in the blame.
I just thought I could trade in my stethoscope for the pen today to reach out further in my bid to continue to live by my principles if I am able to convince even one person today then perhaps the anguish I feel will lessen a bit.
Best regards
Dr (Mrs) Yashua Alkali Hamza
Sharada, Kano
Monday, March 8, 2010
Look what I am missing...
Daily Independent (Lagos)
Nigeria: 500 Feared Killed in Fresh Jos Mayhem - Jonathan Orders Immediate Arrest of Killers
Paul Arhewe Chesa Chesa And Onoja Audu With Agency Reports 7 March 2010
Lagos/Abuja — About 500 Berom natives in Dogon-Hauwa village, five kilometres south of Jos, were massacred on Sunday morning by Fulani herdsmen who raided the community through a border village in Bauchi State.
Neighbours joined Dogon-Hauwa villagers to wail as the bodies of elderly women and children littered everywhere among the dead.
Plateau State Governor, Jonah Jang, who raced to the village from his private residence in the same Du district, fought back tears on seeing the havoc.
He appealed to the survivors to hold their peace as the government would do everything humanly possible to bring the perpetrators to book.
The corpses have been deposited at the state Specialist Hospital and Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH).
Those who received bullet and machete wounds are being treated at the hospitals by doctors who were drafted from their homes to attend to the emergency cases.
The Gbong-Gwom Jos, Jacob Buba, told reporters in Dogon-Hauwa that what took place is unfortunate, lamenting that while the government and traditional rulers are trying to bring enduring peace to Jos and its environs, some people are bent on causing more trouble.
He described what happened in Dogon-Hauwa, which is in his domain, as a crime against humanity that should be thoroughly investigated and the perpetrators prosecuted.
He promised to ensure that justice is done in the matter, even if it means drawing the attention of the Presidency and the international community to the crime.
Police Public Relations Officer, Mohamed Lerema, confirmed the incident, and said the Police Commissioner, Ikechukwu Aduba, would soon address the media on it.
Pockets of attacks were also recorded at Heipang in Barkin Ladi Council at the weekend while Riyom Council has been having similar attacks by Fulani herdsmen in the past two weeks.
Tension built in Jos on Sunday afternoon as news of the killings filtered into the city, but the government urged everyone not to take the law into their hands.
Information Commissioner, Greg Nyelong, declared wanted, former Secretary of Plateau State Muslim Welfare Board, Saleh Bayari, for allegedly inciting the herdsmen.
He told a press conference in Jos that Bayari who recently addressed journalists in Kaduna on the Jos crisis, has been inciting the Fulani against their host communities in Plateau.
He described the latest attack as "ethnic cleansing" carried out against the Berom, the ethnic group to which Jang belongs.
He said 500 persons were butchered, even as Jang toils day and night to maintain peace in the state.
"Saleh Bayari should be arrested because he has been issuing threats and recently addressed a press conference in Kaduna. We have copies of his statement in which he has been spreading false rumours and inciting Fulani against Berom natives," Nyelong said.
Acting President Goodluck Jonathan has placed the Army and other security agencies on red alert and ordered the arrest of the murderers.
He has, just days after receiving a briefing from Inspector General of Police, Ogbonna Onovo, on the recurring mayhem on the Plateau, scheduled another meeting with the heads of security agencies.
A statement issued by Aso Rock said Jonathan directed the security agencies to "undertake strategic initiatives to confront and defeat these roving bands of killers."
He urged all Nigerians to remain peaceful and law abiding, "since violence only begets further violence."
Jonathan expressed sympathy for those who have lost relatives and friends in the attacks, and prayed God to grant them the fortitude to bear the loss.
The incident came two days after Jang embarked on a peace tour of the three Senatorial Districts in the state.
Witnesses said the violence began in the mostly Christian Dogon-Hauwa community at about 3 a.m. on Sunday - an hour when the area should have been under curfew and guarded by troops.
Military units began surrounding the villages around the same time, according to Red Cross Spokesman Robin Waubo, who said the agency did not know how many died, though officials have been sent to local morgues and hospitals.
Police and military officials declined to comment on the attack or the motivation for it.
"It appears to be reprisal," Waubo told the Associated Press (AP).
In nearby Bauchi State, more than 600 people fled to a makeshift camp still holding victims of January's violence, said Adamu Abubakar, a Red Cross official.
"They started running away from the fighting," he disclosed, and "more continued to come."
Jos has remained under curfew since violence on January 17 left more than 300 people dead, the majority of them Muslims.
In January, a panel was still in the middle of a probe of the violence which occurred in Jos on November 28, 2008 that resulted in the death of several people.
Sectarian violence in the North has left thousands dead over the past decade, despite efforts by Abuja to quell religious extremism in the region.
Nigeria: 500 Feared Killed in Fresh Jos Mayhem - Jonathan Orders Immediate Arrest of Killers
Paul Arhewe Chesa Chesa And Onoja Audu With Agency Reports 7 March 2010
Lagos/Abuja — About 500 Berom natives in Dogon-Hauwa village, five kilometres south of Jos, were massacred on Sunday morning by Fulani herdsmen who raided the community through a border village in Bauchi State.
Neighbours joined Dogon-Hauwa villagers to wail as the bodies of elderly women and children littered everywhere among the dead.
Plateau State Governor, Jonah Jang, who raced to the village from his private residence in the same Du district, fought back tears on seeing the havoc.
He appealed to the survivors to hold their peace as the government would do everything humanly possible to bring the perpetrators to book.
The corpses have been deposited at the state Specialist Hospital and Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH).
Those who received bullet and machete wounds are being treated at the hospitals by doctors who were drafted from their homes to attend to the emergency cases.
The Gbong-Gwom Jos, Jacob Buba, told reporters in Dogon-Hauwa that what took place is unfortunate, lamenting that while the government and traditional rulers are trying to bring enduring peace to Jos and its environs, some people are bent on causing more trouble.
He described what happened in Dogon-Hauwa, which is in his domain, as a crime against humanity that should be thoroughly investigated and the perpetrators prosecuted.
He promised to ensure that justice is done in the matter, even if it means drawing the attention of the Presidency and the international community to the crime.
Police Public Relations Officer, Mohamed Lerema, confirmed the incident, and said the Police Commissioner, Ikechukwu Aduba, would soon address the media on it.
Pockets of attacks were also recorded at Heipang in Barkin Ladi Council at the weekend while Riyom Council has been having similar attacks by Fulani herdsmen in the past two weeks.
Tension built in Jos on Sunday afternoon as news of the killings filtered into the city, but the government urged everyone not to take the law into their hands.
Information Commissioner, Greg Nyelong, declared wanted, former Secretary of Plateau State Muslim Welfare Board, Saleh Bayari, for allegedly inciting the herdsmen.
He told a press conference in Jos that Bayari who recently addressed journalists in Kaduna on the Jos crisis, has been inciting the Fulani against their host communities in Plateau.
He described the latest attack as "ethnic cleansing" carried out against the Berom, the ethnic group to which Jang belongs.
He said 500 persons were butchered, even as Jang toils day and night to maintain peace in the state.
"Saleh Bayari should be arrested because he has been issuing threats and recently addressed a press conference in Kaduna. We have copies of his statement in which he has been spreading false rumours and inciting Fulani against Berom natives," Nyelong said.
Acting President Goodluck Jonathan has placed the Army and other security agencies on red alert and ordered the arrest of the murderers.
He has, just days after receiving a briefing from Inspector General of Police, Ogbonna Onovo, on the recurring mayhem on the Plateau, scheduled another meeting with the heads of security agencies.
A statement issued by Aso Rock said Jonathan directed the security agencies to "undertake strategic initiatives to confront and defeat these roving bands of killers."
He urged all Nigerians to remain peaceful and law abiding, "since violence only begets further violence."
Jonathan expressed sympathy for those who have lost relatives and friends in the attacks, and prayed God to grant them the fortitude to bear the loss.
The incident came two days after Jang embarked on a peace tour of the three Senatorial Districts in the state.
Witnesses said the violence began in the mostly Christian Dogon-Hauwa community at about 3 a.m. on Sunday - an hour when the area should have been under curfew and guarded by troops.
Military units began surrounding the villages around the same time, according to Red Cross Spokesman Robin Waubo, who said the agency did not know how many died, though officials have been sent to local morgues and hospitals.
Police and military officials declined to comment on the attack or the motivation for it.
"It appears to be reprisal," Waubo told the Associated Press (AP).
In nearby Bauchi State, more than 600 people fled to a makeshift camp still holding victims of January's violence, said Adamu Abubakar, a Red Cross official.
"They started running away from the fighting," he disclosed, and "more continued to come."
Jos has remained under curfew since violence on January 17 left more than 300 people dead, the majority of them Muslims.
In January, a panel was still in the middle of a probe of the violence which occurred in Jos on November 28, 2008 that resulted in the death of several people.
Sectarian violence in the North has left thousands dead over the past decade, despite efforts by Abuja to quell religious extremism in the region.
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