Commentaries

Are Abagusii "wachawi"

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Published on Friday, 13 March 2009 00:57

Every community in kenya is stereotyped according to the general perceptions that ordinary wananchi have about it.most times,such perceptions hold true and are indeed a reflection of the particular community's character.however,ordinary wananchi sometimes get it totally wrong when assessing a community's character because such assessment is not based on real experiences through direct interaction with the said community but rather through the media,hearsay and assumptions.once such perceptions become internalised they become so deep rooted in the public's mind that to question them is seen as an attempt to wish away reality.

the fallacy that the abagusii community is one of most "wachawi" communities in the country is one such wrong perception.to correct this wrong perception one has to understand how the community gained the tag of "wachawi" in the first place.before the late 80s,the abagusii were never considered to be a community in which "uchawi" was widespread.however in the late 80s and early 90s,there was a spate of high profile lynchings of "wachawi" all over gusii.these lynchings were splashed all over the local as well as international media.one issue of the TIME magazine had on it's cover a suspected witch engulfed in a ball of fire running for dear life.human rights groups all over the world were up in arms and the "wachawi wa kisii" was the story in every pub and home in kenya.thereafter,the lynchings continued but on a smaller scale.to date,groups of youth still gang up and lynch suspected witches and criminals.

from then onwards,the abagusii gained the tag of "wachawi".but is "lynching wachawi" the same as "being wachawi"? i don't think so.no doubt,there are "wachawi" amongst the abagusii,but "uchawi" is not as widespread in kisii as it is in most kenyan communities.the only difference is that the abagusii abhor it so much as to do something about it.not that i support the lynchings,but because "uchawi" is not considered a crime in eyes of the law,the villagers in gusii feel they aren't left with many options.

infact if communities were to be fairly and objectively rated according to the degree of "uchawi" present in it's population,the abagusii would be nowhere among the top 15 or even 20.i have lived at the coast and i know for a fact that many swahili families rear "jinis".infact,there are more "majini" than livestock.the nine mijikenda communities believe and practice "uchawi" so much that it is an accepted way of life.nobody lynches anyone for it.the akamba are in a league of their own.the luo and the luhya follow closely.in short,the abagusii are not as "wachawi" as they are believed to be.