A Zimbabwean mother is appealing for government assistance to repatriate the body of her 23-year-old son, who was reportedly killed while fighting for Russia in its war against Ukraine.
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Read E-PaperInstead of celebrating Tanaka Muzirikazi’s 23rd birthday this month, Rodwin Chitewere spent the day praying for the return of his remains so that she could give him a dignified burial.
Muzirikazi left Zimbabwe in April from a remote village in Manicaland, where he had been living with his grandmother.
Chitewere, who lives about 350 kilometres away in Beitbridge, said she was unaware of his departure until a relative noticed a change to his WhatsApp status.
He reportedly travelled with his cousin, Dylan Goodho, who is also 23.
The family later received a voice message from a man in Russia who said Muzirikazi had been seriously wounded in a drone attack.
In July, the same person informed Chitewere that her son had died.
“I just want him brought home. I need closure,” Chitewere said.
“I want to give my son a dignified burial. I am deeply pained.”
The circumstances surrounding Muzirikazi’s recruitment, military service and reported death have not been independently established.
His mother has now appealed to Zimbabwean authorities to help locate and repatriate his remains.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed the family in July that its request had been referred to the Zimbabwean embassy in Russia.
No timetable for the return of the body has been provided.
Muzirikazi’s reported death highlights the burden carried by families when young Zimbabweans are drawn into distant conflicts by promises or expectations of employment and financial security.
While the war is fought thousands of kilometres away, its price is being paid by parents and relatives left behind without answers, certainty or the bodies of their loved ones.
His death came after the Zimbabwean government announced in March that 15 nationals had been killed on foreign battlefields, while more than 60 others remained trapped on the front lines.
That warning was issued about a month before Muzirikazi and Goodho left Zimbabwe.
Goodho’s family said it believed he was travelling to Tanzania to work as a car-import agent.
His father, artisanal miner Vharance Goodho, borrowed money to pay for police-clearance documents, medical examinations and other travel-related expenses because the opportunity appeared genuine.
“It looked like a genuine opportunity,” he said.
The family only learnt that Goodho had joined the military after he arrived in Russia and told them he was serving as a soldier. He later sent US$1,500 home and said he was arranging to ship a vehicle to Zimbabwe.
His relatives last heard from him in May, and his present condition and whereabouts remain unknown.
His mother, Fadzai Chikove, has pleaded for him to abandon the conflict and return home.
“Dylan, if you ever hear this message, please come back home,” she said.
“You cannot be fighting a war that is not ours.”
For the two families, hopes of overseas employment have been replaced by grief, fear and unanswered questions. One mother is waiting for her son’s body; the other is waiting for any sign that hers is still alive.
