Female congregant’s death at Madzibaba Ishmael’s shrine was due to pregnancy complications — postmortem report

A REPORT of a postmortem conducted at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals has revealed that a female congregant at controversial Madzibaba Ishmael’s shrine died as a result of a miscarriage, which needed specialist medical attention which she was denied due to religious beliefs.

Hazel Chikurume (27), whose remains were recently exhumed from the eerie shrine known as Canaan situated in Nyabira, Mashonaland West province, died from complications surrounding her pregnancy.

She died in November last year before she was controversially buried at the Nyabira shrine without the knowledge of her biological mother.

Chikurume’s death and a rushed burial opened a can of worms, which attracted the attention of law enforcement agents and child rights organisations.

In an interview with Destiny TV, Chikurume’s uncle, who referred to himself as Sendi, confirmed that the deceased died as a result of miscarriage.

“A post-mortem revealed that Hazel had suffered a miscarriage before her death and it had been unknown to her family,” said Sendi.

Chikurume’s father and her husband led the law enforcement agents to her grave to undertake the exhumation process.

Allegations were rife that Chikurume’s hasty burial was a cover up by Madzibaba Ishmael’s church which is accused of abusing women at the Lily farm compound.

Memory Mukanairi, the mother of the deceased, said she just wanted to have sight of the remains of her daughter irrespective of the stage of decomposition.

“We were not informed of her death and just heard about the issue through neighbours. We then went to the farm, where we were advised to seek protection, since the sect leaders were reported to be violent. I am told my daughter died and was buried by four men who are not even related to her.

“We are happy to witness our child’s remains being exhumed. We were not given the chance to mourn our child because of this indoctrination.

“It is really painful to me that my child died during childbirth because now I am thinking that, maybe, if I had been there she was not going to go through that and I was going to help her,” she said.

Chikurume was reburied last weekend at her homestead in Mazvihwa, Mt Darwin in Mashonaland Central province.