Original Research
Reformulating identity in post war Mozambique: Sexuality and initiation of women in the Pafuri Triangle
New Contree | Vol 84 | a40 |
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/nc.v84i0.40
| © 2023 Teresa K. Connor
| This work is licensed under CC Attribution 4.0
Submitted: 26 January 2023 | Published: 30 July 2020
Submitted: 26 January 2023 | Published: 30 July 2020
About the author(s)
Teresa K. Connor, University of Fort Hare, South AfricaFull Text:
PDF (582KB)Abstract
This paper explores the initiation of women – or Vukhomba – in Pafuri, Mozambique. As historical literature illustrates, this is an event that is linked to the repression and regulation of sexuality by colonialists, missionaries and independent state rule. However, the paper forwards the proposition that initiation and sexuality are crucial for the self-expression and authority of women, and that it is in fact, central to the way in which people re-orientate themselves after events of war and displacement. Sexuality is part of the allure of the Pafuri as a border region, particularly for residents in South Africa and Mozambique, who share common linkages with each other over international boundaries. The paper argues that Vukhomba is an important aspect of indigenous knowledge that is central to the way in which people manage disruption.
Keywords
Initiation; Sexuality; Women; Ritual; Control; Pafuri Triangle; Mozambique; Identity
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