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(SUNDAY MAIL ZW) Zim, Moza brew ‘njemani war’

Zim, Moza brew ‘njemani war’
Saturday, 12 May 2012 17:06
Tendai Chara

After getting wind of an alleged bitter land dispute involving Mozambicans and their Zimbabwean counterparts near the border areas along the Gonarezhou National Park, The Sunday Mail In-Depth, in its quest to dig deeper, decided to undertook the gruesome 900km journey.

Apart from the fatigue related to the long trip, the crew had to contend with a bad road network, threats from active landmines and wild animals along the Limpopo Valley.

The “first leg” of the fact-finding journey, from Harare to Chiredzi via Mutare, was enjoyable and without any hitches.
However, the other part of the journey, which was not as comfortable as the first, began as soon as we arrived in Chiredzi.

Our destination was Chief Sengwe’s area and, after getting vague directions to this remote area, we soon found ourselves lost in the maze of the vast Chiredzi sugarcane plantations.

Since we did not have a road map and there was not even a single soul in sight to ask for directions, we wandered, for close to an hour, in the plantation's criss-crossing roads.
The emergence of a farm guard was greeted with loud sighs of relief.
After finally getting the right directions, we drove on towards Chikombedzi, crossing the very narrow Runde River Bridge.

It was the crossing of the river into Chilonga Village that marked the beginning of a real-life nightmare.
The road was in a bad state, forcing us to drive at snail's pace.
Negotiating dangerous curves, narrow bridges and steep slopes, we finally reached our destination after a grueling eight-hour journey.
The bigger part of Chief Sengwe’s area lies in the hot, dry Limpopo Valley and borders Zimbabwe with both Mozambique and South Africa.

Across the Limpopo is the Kruger National Park and adjacent to the large animal reserve is our own Gonarezhou National Park.
It is in this remote part of the country in which a number of animals, among them elephants and lions, still roam freely, locals and their neighbouring counterparts from Mozambique are engaged in a bitter land dispute.

The most surprising thing about the land dispute is that it is not being fuelled by the need for farming land. The dispute is not about the plentiful game species either.
Instead, the simmering tensions are as a result of a very unusual source — a palm tree which the locals call the murara tree.
Villagers from Chief Sengwe’s area told the In-depth crew that Mozambicans were encroaching onto their land as they seek, not farming land, but the murara tree.

From the palm tree, the villagers from both countries make a popular alcoholic brew known as njemani.
[Natural distillation . . . Njemani brew drips out of a murara palm tree]

Natural distillation . . . Njemani brew drips out of a murara palm tree

In the local Shangani language, njemani translates into “German wine” and the illicit brew is an integral social part of the Shangani-speaking people living in this area.
Chief Sengwe told the In-Depth crew that the Government needed to act on the issue immediately.

“For the past two years, Mozambicans have been encroaching onto our land as they seek the murara tree. The problem emanates from the fact that the border perimeter is made up of wooden poles. The wooden perimeter fence has since fallen down and the Mozambicans are taking advantage of that fact to encroach onto our land. The Government must do something before the situation turns ugly,” Chief Sengwe said.

Although no reports of clashes over land have been reported, Chief Sengwe said that the dispute must be solved once and for all to avoid future skirmishes.
“Some of my affected subjects are losing patience. The border area must be clearly defined so that we cannot continue losing our land,” Chief Sengwe said.
Hlupeko Chauke, one of the affected villagers, concurred with his chief.

“One villager from Mozambique approached me and asked for permission to draw njemani from the murara trees that are in my fields. That same immigrant is now claiming title to the land. Something must be done before we take the law into our own hands,” Chauke said.
However, a villager from the Mozambican side downplayed the feud, casually stating that Mozambicans were not interested in the land but “the murara trees.”
“I don’t think that we have a serious problem here. We are not interested in the land but the trees. The border is not also clearly marked, meaning that we do not know were

the boundaries are. We have been living happily with our Zimbabwean neighbours since the days of our forefathers,” said Muzumani Chauke, who interestingly shares the same surname with a number of people from the Zimbabwean side.

But what makes the murara tree and njemani brew such important elements of the people living along this border area?
After spending a day with the locals, it became apparent to the In-Depth crew that drinking njemani is an integral social activity for the Shangani-speaking people from this part of the country.

[Ripe and ready . . . Muzumani samples his mature brew ]

Ripe and ready . . . Muzumani samples his mature brew
After a hard day’s work in the fields, local men will, later in the afternoon, converge and drink the illicit brew which costs US$1 for two litres.
Just like any other drinking spots found in any other part of the country, the locals gulp their brew as they discuss issues that affect them.
The palm tree is pruned first before its outer bark is removed. A deep cut is then made into the main stem and a leaf is then inserted into the plant.

A white, frothing liquid drips from the stem-cutting via the leaf which acts as a funnel. The collected liquid is then put into large containers and left for a day or two to mature.
Before the maturity of the “wine”, it has a sweet taste but when it matures, it turns sour.
Unlike other types of alcoholic beverage that are sold in beerhalls or shebeens, njemani is mostly sold and drank at source.

A number of “bush breweries” and “beerhalls” are dotted alongside the border and outlying areas.
“This is what I call royal Shangani beer. I have travelled throughout the country, but this beer is only brewed and drank in this part of the country and only by the Shangani. This is part of our heritage and we are proud of it. We will pass it on to the future generations,” said a guzzler as he gulped the brew from a gourd.

Added another drinker: “We prefer njemani to other alcoholic beverages. This beer is good for one’s health since it is natural and does not have such damaging alcoholic agents as yeast. This is a gift from our gods.”
This reporter was offered a “complimentary” sip and after gulping only one cupful, it became clear to our news crew why the villagers are at loggerheads over the palm trees.

The tree is the source of a clear, sparkling, thirst-drenching alcoholic brew that the Shangani-speaking people living along the Zimbabwe-Mozambican border call their “royal brew.”

Labels: ALCOHOL, BEER

posted by MrK @ 4:38 PM