The Sunday Mail
OUR reporter Norman Muchemwa (NM) continues to chronicle the political life of Cde Christopher Mawomberere (CM). This week the former freedom fighter gives a personal account of the Nyadzonia Camp attack, which he says was executed by one of their own, Morrison Nyathi.
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CM: The camp was called Chirodzo, but it was under the command of Mozambican Frelimo fighters. We used to call them macamarada. When we arrived, we were surprised to see the school boys who had talked to Ketai in the afternoon and whom we failed to later locate at Mutambara Mission, were already there.
They had taken a different route and their group was large, about 45.
We learnt they had arrived around eight in the morning.
Our group got to the base just before midday.
Sezvo kusvika kwedu kwakaita vanhu vaitiziva, the boys Ketai had met at Mutambara School, hazvina kunyanya kunetsa kuti titambirwe nemacamarada.
Takatozoswera tavakuimbiswa nziyo dzechimurenga.
NM: Who was leading you into song, apart from the Frelimo fighters, were there local leaders at this camp?
CM: Yes, there was a group of Zanla fighters at this camp, they are the ones who received us there.
They were on their way to the war front.
These fighters also tried to establish who, amongst us, knew of a place kwainzi kwaChayamiti.
They asked if we had heard gunshots around that area, but I only told them that I had seen a helicopter that had hovered the area two days before.
They started conversing amongst themselves that maybe the helicopter was looking for a group that had crossed to the war front.
The encounter with these armed comrades boosted our confidence and I was now yearning for the moment I would hold a gun.
From these fighters I still remember only Cde Gumbo.
Most of the fighters did not reveal their names to us. Remember, we were still being vetted.
They were still trying to determine if we had a genuine cause.
We stayed at the base for four days. This was to prepare us for a long journey.
I could tell life had changed for the worst. On our arrival we made bedding out of grass.
Even the food, it was now a matter of small portions poorly prepared to feed many people.
Pakanga paisisina zvekuti handina kuguta. Waitofanirwa kuwana simba nezvishoma zvawadya.
After four days, we were taken by a truck belonging to one of the few remaining Portuguese settlers, to a place yainzi kuDhafu.
This place is where mealie-meal for comrades at Nyadzonia camp was milled and stored. It was guarded by macamarada and a few Zanla fighters.
We stayed there for a week under the watchful eyes of Frelimo soldiers.
From there, the group I was part of was taken to Nyadzonia, which was a refugee camp.
A truck was availed for the journey.
NM: Can you tell us about your stay and the situation at Nyadzonia and who were the leaders at the camp that time?
CM: On arrival at Nyadzonia, the situation changed a bit in terms of security vetting as this place had many refugees as well as some trained comrades.
I still remember leaders like Cde Hondo, Cde Chibage, Cde Chihambakwe, Cde Chitiyo, a female, among others.
After the vetting process, we were grouped in different battalions.
People were asked if they had come for training or as refugees. The refugee status applied mainly to the elderly and children.
Most able-bodied young people like myself opted to be trained to go and fight the Smith regime back home.
We stayed there from around April 1976 until the time of the Nyadzonia attack.
During our stay at Nyadzonia those who had opted to go for training would occasionally participate in basic exercises as well as helping in other day-to-day errands at the camp.
Those going for military training were taken in batches to various training centres in and outside Mozambique.
There were few training camps at the time, as the leadership was still mobilising weapons and other essentials for favourable training.
The major challenge at the camp was food.
Food supplies were dwindling due to the overwhelming number of people arriving daily.
We survived through difficult times as people would eat anything just to fill their stomachs.
NM: You spoke about the Nyadzonia raid, what do you still remember about this attack and how did you survive?
CM: I still remember it was on August 8 when we were celebrating the formation of Zanu.
It was after parade when Morrison Nyathi and his team of Rhodesian Soldiers, disguised as macamarada, arrived at the camp.
I believe they wanted to arrive while we were still at the parade, but they missed the time.
What complicated matters was that we all knew Nyathi as one of us and we never suspected anything at that moment.
They arrived in a convoy of around seven armoured cars, with men dressed in Mozambique Frelimo uniforms and their unique caps.
The vehicles were painted in Frelimo colours and had what appeared to be genuine Frelimo registration number plates.
The vehicles parked at our parade point, and as I said no one suspected anything because Nyathi was the first to get out of one of the trucks.
Besides, we were used to these trucks as they came with food, new recruits or refugees.
At times these Frelimo soldiers came to meet our leaders to draft plans for our operations.
When the trucks arrived, I was on my way to Nyadzonia River which was near the camp.
I didn’t worry myself much about the trucks and like everyone else continued with what I was doing.
When I got to the river, I removed my clothes to bath.
Before I had splashed myself with water, an emergency whistle was blown.
The camp routine was that when we hear the whistle, we all assemble at the parade point.
As such, people took heed of the whistle and began running towards the assembly point.
Since Nyathi was one of the senior comrades, people started gathering without any suspicions.
I quickly put on my clothes with some of the comrades who were already at the river.
We were asking ourselves what could be the reason for being called to the gathering point.
Some suggested that maybe Nyathi had come to take more comrades for training.
Many people had gathered whilst a few including myself were still making it to the parade point when I heard Nyathi’s voice, through a hailer achiti zvinhu zvachinja macomrades, ikozvino tave kutopandukirana.
At that point I heard multiple gunshots.
What made the situation worse was the fact that Nyadzonia had a few trained comrades and there were not many weapons for the trained comrades to retaliate.
Nyathi knew about all this and he was very confident that nothing would happen to them.
This was a serious situation because people panicked and there was a lot of confusion pakatanga kurira pfuti.
Those who survived, I think, were a result of employing basic training tactics of taking cover or crawling.
I managed to survive this attack because when the shots were being fired I had not yet arrived at the parade centre so we managed to run back towards the river and swam across to safety.
There are some who managed to reach the river, but failed to swim to safety because they were not swimmers.
These people drowned or were pursued and ruthlessly murdered by the enemy.
Hundreds of unarmed civilians perished during the attack and it was a very bad situation.
To be continued next week. . .
