The Interface of Human Rights and Ndau Women’s Maternal Healthcare Rites

Abstract

Human rights and African indigenous beliefs and practices have not shared a wholesome relationship, especially when it comes to issues of women’s reproductive and maternal health rights. From an African indigenous religions (AIRs) perspective, reproductive and maternal health issues fall within the realm of the sacred. Anything that is contrary to their beliefs and practices is not taken lightly because it attacks the heart of their life. However, in most cases these beliefs are considered to be in conflict with human rights. Thus, human rights and indigenous maternal beliefs and practices seem to share an antagonistic relationship. This chapter is a qualitative-phenomenological exploration of the Ndau indigenous religious beliefs and practices on maternal healthcare. We contend that there are potential areas that can be mobilised to strike a working partnership between the two for the good of the Ndau in particular and the Zimbabwean women in general. In turn, this will promote the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals 3 and 5. We chose the Ndau because they often suffer a major backlash in the public domain with regard to their perceived and/or real negative human rights record. Secondly, African AIRs have numerous variations in their beliefs and practices, even though they are underpinned by a single philosophy of communal existence that incorporates the metaphysical and non-human entities (see Mbiti, African Religions and Philosophy, Heinemann, 1969). This chapter foregrounds the country’s rich diversity in indigenous norms and values by articulating the indigenous practices aimed towards preserving and enhancing maternal health among the Ndau people.KeywordsAfrican indigenous religionsHuman rightsNdauMaternal healthSustainable Development Goals 3 and 5Zimbabwe