Four years have passed since Hlulani Maswanganyi and her one-month-old son, Trinity Mbavala, disappeared, but her family members and friends have not forgotten her. The past weekend a memorial service was held at Xikundu village in Malamulele to commemorate her life.
Hlulani and her son disappeared in 2015 after they were kidnapped by a former Malamulele traffic officer, Masingita Chabani. Trinity was later found and reunited with his family, but his mother has been missing ever since.
Police investigations that ensued after the kidnapping led to the arrest of Chabani (47) and her co-accused, Steven Sithole. In a separate trial, Sithole confessed to the murder and was sentenced to 25 years' imprisonment. He also showed the police where Hlulani's body was disposed of at the Luvuvhu River. He has since turned State witness.
Despite the confession by Sithole, Hlulani's body was never found. Blood samples found at the spot were a near match to tests done on Mbavala and his grandmother, Ms Agnes Maswanganyi. This led the family to conclude that her body had been dumped there.
The family, supported by community structures, pastors, traditional leaders, government officials and pupils from Shikundu High School, where Hlulani was a pupil before her disappearance, held a memorial service to remember her life.
Family spokesperson Mr Wilson Mahlawule said the family had gone through a rough time in trying to figure out what could have happened to their loved one. He said they had been hoping over the years that she would one day be found, even if she was dead, so that they could give her a decent funeral, but that had not happened.
"We have waited for far too long and it is time that we move on from this painful episode. As a family, we have come to accept that she will never return. She has been taken away from us and we feel it is time to give her a dignified send-off, even though we do not have her body. We are quite convinced that she was killed and dumped in the river. This is now the time to say bye-bye to her, and may her soul rest in peace," he said.
Mahlawule further thanked all who had rallied around the family throughout their ordeal, as well as those who had given them moral support during the trial.