Olufuko
edit--Hishoono (talk) 13:57, 8 October 2012 (UTC)Hishoono 211116343
Olufuko is the initiation ceremony of girls between the ages of 16 and 20 into womanhood, whereby the girls (in rare occasions) voluntarily go for the initiation, but in most cases the parents force them to go for this initiation. The festival takes place annually in Oshiwambo traditional house which is specifically selected and prepared in advance for the occasion.
Indeed, culture plays a major role in promoting harmony, peace and stability between and among traditional communities and culture is a strong tool to enhance nation building and unity in any nation. It is against this background that the revival of our cultural heritage and practices will also serve to mentally throw away colonially imposed taboos and give us a sense of belonging, as well as promote our identity.
It certainly serves as a cultural buffer which holds back loose morality and promiscuity, and gives women power over their bodies, self-respect and dignity. Likewise, the Oshiwambo speaking communities used to have Olufuko as a traditional female initiation ceremony where young brides used to undergo a wedding transition rite with the blessing of "Namunganga", an honorary name given to a male or female entitled to initiate traditional marriages. At this occasion, the bride had to apply Olukula all over her body, a mixture of a red ochre dye obtained from the heartwood of the trunk of the teak tree. The wood is dried and crushed into a fine powder mixed with body butter made from cow fat processed and mixed with scented herbs. In this regard, such an event served a useful purpose of cleansing the bride from shame and the stigma of a shameless woman with bad social behavior and who had fallen pregnant before being cleansed and purified even through the traditional wedding rites. (Ellen Ndeshi Namhila 2009: Tears of Courage, p.143-149). This custom reminds me of the biblical purification of a woman after childbirth when she had to see a priest to atone with burnt and sin offerings (Leviticus 12) and when the priest used to mix the blood of a slaughtered animal with oil and put it on the lobe of the right ear, on the thumb of the right hand and on the toe of the right foot of the one to be cleansed (Leviticus 14:10-31) (Numbers 5:11-31).
During the main event day, the girls will practice the traditional dancing in a circle form. While in the dancing floor, men-whether age-mate or older, are allowed to choose who they want, by placing a bracelet (normally from a palm tree) on a girl’s wrist. If the bride accepts the man, she will not remove the bracelet, and if she does not accept him, she will remove the bracelet and throw it away. If the man’s proposal was not accepted by the bride during the event, he will proceed to the bride’s parents for further discussion-you never know he might succeed! Sometimes the reason for refusing the proposal is that; the man proposing is far older than the bride. “During the ritual girls can be tested for pregnancy, by eating a hot meal of mahangu porridge with spinach cooked in too much cattle fat and this meal is taken around 12h00p.m, so if the girl is pregnant she will not even swallow anything she will just vomit. Sometimes, the girls can also be allowed to do domestic chores such as pounding mahangu, if she is pregnant, she will be lazy to do a thing”. (..Ms. Penny Hendjabi, Oukwanyama Traditional Authirity-2012) If the girl undergoes the initiation to womanhood, she is declared to be free from bad luck-meaning; even if she get pregnant she will not be regarded as “Ehengu”-somebody who got a baby without getting married. Someone, who under- went the initiation, can also perform the initiation
Although, many Namibians welcomed the revival of the ceremony, however, the missionaries sees church and court marriages come to the fore with traditional marriage being relegated to the background, as the church deemed it unholy. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia (ELCIN) has denounced the traditional practice as against Christianity.
A pastoral letter signed by ELCIN Bishop Dr Vaino Shekutamba Nambala says “The practice encourages youth to be promiscuous, which may lead to the spread of HIV and AIDS”.
Public indecency-the girls bodies are not covered with anything especially the breasts. In most cases the girls are forced and convinced by their parents, therefore they have lean chance to survive the ritual. Religious discrimination-these girls are Christians-possibly their parents too, but know they are forced to do things out of the Christian context. Economic discrimination-these girls are mostly too young, they were supposed to be at school studying and become economic independent, but if they are initiated and get engaged during the event, it means the girl has to drop her studies for marriage and of course become a teenage mother. Forced- marriage and child abuse, hence the girl has less and mostly no influence in the decision, she will be forced to marry older man who might be sick.
In view of the above, "I urge all Namibians to work together and preserve the positive aspects of our cultural heritage" as the, Colloquium on Black civilization and education resolved in Nigeria in 1977 (New Era, 08 August 2012) “That all positive values of African traditional religion be encouraged and teach the younger generation the positive traditional values and norms and empower the younger girls to have self-respect and dignity instead of trying to throw the baby away with the dirty waters”.
References
1. http//www.namibian.com.na/
2. http//www.comnewera.com.na/
3. http//www.suncom.na/