Post-War Reintegration Challenges Faced by Women Freedom Fighters: The Case Study of Gweru, Midlands, Zimbabwe

Abstract: After serving in a brutal revolutionary insurgency, Zimbabwean women warriors were supposed to return to civilian life and blend in as if nothing had occurred. Everyone has the right to social acceptance. A qualitative methodology, or case study design, was used in this investigation. Two male and three female freedom fighters participated in in-depth interviews as part of the data gathering process. The research revealed that war veterans have turned to alcohol and drugs to deal with trauma-related issues, but these substances actually make matters worse by making people dependent on alcohol, impairing their judgment and mental faculties, causing issues in their relationships with friends and family, and occasionally putting them at risk for rape, suicide, violence, or accidents. Women and girls were sexually assaulted by freedom fighters at pungwes, which are nighttime gatherings when guerrillas politicize the villages. It is the government’s responsibility to implement a framework for reintegration of women war veterans and victims through reconstruction, rehabilitation, empowerment and social security programmes.