A leader of a Zimbabwean religious sect has appeared in court, after 16 graves were discovered on his farm north-west of the capital Harare. Ishmael Choku-rongerwa was arrested along with seven members of his church. Police raided his property and rescued 250 children, who were reportedly being subjected to physical labour. 

Harare

A leader of a religious sect in Zimbabwe has appeared in court following a police raid on his farm, located north-west of Harare, where authorities uncovered 16 graves. Ishmael Choku-rongerwa, identified as the sect leader, was arrested in the operation along with seven other members of his church. 

During the raid, police rescued 250 children from the property. Reports indicate that these children were being subjected to physical labour. The discovery of the graves and the condition of the rescued children have raised serious concerns regarding the treatment of individuals within the sect.



Sect leader in Zimbabwe accused of exploiting children

This self-styled prophet and seven members of his sect are accused of abusing and exploiting hundreds of children. Ishmael Chokorongerwa and his followers deny the charges, but police say there's evidence of child labour and sexual abuse. We can now confirm that close to 27 have been found to have been sexually abused. Some of them, they have got children, yet their ages are below 16, indicating that there is a case of early child marriages. Police raided the sect's compound earlier this week and found more than 250 children. They've been kept out of school and forced to work. Most of them don't have birth certificates. The remains of seven children and nine adults were found in unregistered graves. Police took the children they found to shelters along with some of the sect's members. Many of Chokorongerwa's followers say he did nothing wrong. Our children do not attend formal education because what they teach is contrary to God's orders. If we send our children to school, it will not rain. That's why you see the rest of the country has had no rains, but here we have plenty. Others in the local community are welcoming the involvement of the police. This is a straightforward case of kidnapping children. We used to hear about such cases on TV, but today it's happening right here. It's so upsetting. Zimbabwe has many reclusive sects. Some keep children away from school, practice polygamy and sanction child marriages. Police say their investigation is ongoing and there may be more charges to come. Benton Monaghan, Al Jazeera

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