There is a painful practice in parts of Zimbabwean society that rarely makes it into headlines, yet it continues to shape how gender-based violence is understood — and excused.

It is the practice of demanding financial compensation after a woman dies at the hands of a partner, instead of demanding justice while she is still alive.

Cattle, cows, cash, or “traditional fines” are exchanged between families after a daughter’s death — after a long time of abuse, neglect, humiliation, or decades of psychological torment.
And this payment becomes the full stop on her story.

No accountability.
No justice.
No protection for other women.
Just cultural bookkeeping over a dead woman’s body.

This is one of Zimbabwe’s most uncomfortable truths.

🔶 1. A woman’s life should never be reduced to a transaction after death

Women who suffer:

• physical abuse
• economic deprivation
• emotional and psychological torture
• forced polygamy
• marital rape
• abandonment
• humiliation and public disrespect

…often endure this violence for years, with their families fully aware.

Some families tell them to “be strong.”
Some urge them to hold the marriage together “for the children.”
Some see divorce as shameful.
Some simply find it easier to ignore the suffering.

But when the abuse finally kills her, suddenly the family moves with urgency — not to seek justice, but to seek compensation.

Her bruises become evidence.
Her trauma becomes leverage.
Her corpse becomes a bargaining tool.

This is not culture. This is injustice wrapped in tradition.

2. Compensation rewards silence — and protects abusers

When families accept money after death, they legitimise several ideas:

• that a man can mistreat a woman as long as he pays later
• that a woman’s suffering has monetary value
• that families can overlook violence while she is alive because there will be “something” after
• that it only takes death to get tough on abuse
• that accountability is optional

This practice shields perpetrators and erases victims.

It teaches abusive men that their actions do not carry real consequences.
It teaches women that their pain is negotiable.
It teaches communities that violence can be settled, not confronted.

3. Families must intervene early — not at funerals

The moment a family becomes aware of abuse within a relationship, they must intervene. Intervention is not about shaming the partner. It is about protecting life and the quality of life.

That intervention should include:

• demanding the abuse stop
• reporting the violence
• involving authorities
• helping the woman leave when necessary
• supporting her financially and emotionally
• ensuring she is not isolated
• refusing to prioritise lobola over a living daughter

Waiting until she dies and then collecting compensation is not only negligent — it is morally bankrupt. Families cannot outsource protection to fate and then demand money when fate turns fatal.

A dead woman’s body should never be used as a settlement tool.

Cultural practices evolve — and this one must go

Our culture is full of beautiful traditions that protect dignity, honour, community and family. But not every inherited practice deserves preservation.

Traditions that allow violence to be ignored in life and monetised in death must be buried, not defended.

We owe our daughters better.
We owe our sons a better example.
We owe our communities justice, not transactions.

THE UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTH

Compensation after death cannot undo a lifetime of abuse.
Families must stop accepting money in place of justice — and start protecting their daughters while they are still alive.