Republic of Zimbabwe embraces new Adopt-A-Prison concept

The work of the Rev. Victor and Violet Chembela helps the country’s prison population to succeed upon their release

by Hans Hallundbaek | Special to Presbyterian News Service

The Rev. Victor Chembela and his wife, Violet, offer musical selections to the incarcerated at a prison near the airport in Harare, Zimbabwe. (Contributed photo)

Did you ever have a dream of a street, a park, or perhaps a country being named after you?

Naming a country after himself was the arrogant feat accomplished by Cecil Rhodes, a British citizen in the late 1800s. As the founder of the British South Africa Company in 1893, Rhodes, besides reaping untold riches, managed to name a large territory in the southern part of Africa after himself, Rhodesia, a new country 1.5 times larger than his home country, England. No doubt a conquest bolstering his prestige in the gentlemen’s clubs of London, while his subjects spent lifetimes toiling and sweating in his diamond, gold and copper mines.

Rhodes’ exploits were not unusual during the disgraceful colonization period spanning from the 15th to the mid-20th century. It was a complex and controversial era involving the expansion of European powers, as well as other empires, into territories across Africa, Asia, the Americas, and Oceania, with profound and lasting effects on global society, politics, and culture.

For the colonized territories, that era was a dark and horrific chapter in human history. Many Africans today sadly describe the experience this way: “First came the missioner of the white man’s God. He asked us to close our eyes and put our hands on his Bible for solemn prayer. When we opened our eyes, the soldiers had stolen our country.”

In 1980, the former British colony of Rhodesia proudly celebrated its independence as the Republic of Zimbabwe, a rather new independent African country approximately the size of California and with a population of about 17 million people. It is a country with a blend of many cultures and therefore has 16 official languages, one of which is English. Zimbabwe has a rich history dating back several hundred thousand years as witnessed by archeological record of arrowheads and cave paintings. The country’s name of Zimbabwe points back to the Kingdom of Zimbabwe, an important trading center for ivory, gold and copper in the 14^th century.

A study group on the Adopt-A-Prison concept at the Murehwa prison in Zimbabwe. (Contributed photo)

Today the people of God in Zimbabwe are sharing the gospel of Jesus in powerful ways, reflecting the current cultures and conditions in Africa. One such individual is the Rev. Victor Chembela, a Zimbabwean minister. He and his wife Violet have developed a powerful prison outreach program, highlighting the values of loving, sharing and working together in teamwork suggested in the Zimbabwean proverb: “Those who eat alone, die alone.”

Rev. Chembela is open to new ideas from abroad such as the Adopt-A-Prison (AAP) concept first successfully practiced at the Bedford and Taconic Correctional Facilities for women in New York. He learned about the AAP concept at the Pan Africa CURE International Prison Conference in Nairobi, Kenya in May of 2023. Since then, this community outreach model for prison reform has swept through countries in East Africa. Like pearls on a string, AAP pilot programs have emerged in Ethiopia and Kenya and down through DR Congo, Rwanda, Malawi, and are now a reality in Zimbabwe. In addition to two programs already established in Pakistan, the AAP concept is now being considered for Latin America and Australia, all in faithful obedience to the gospel call of loving your neighbor and spurred on by the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The new Adopt-A-Prison program in Zimbabwe is spearheaded by an evangelistic prison ministry program founded by Violet and Victor Chembela. This certified prison chaplains couple have an inspiring 15-year background in prison ministry and outreach in South Africa and Zimbabwe. As the director of the ministry program, Victor Chembela also directs the Pan Africa CURE Chapter in Zimbabwe. In the work he is supported full-time by his wife, an advisory board and a group of volunteer missionaries. The ministry is based on Matthew 25:36, “I needed clothes, and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you visited me,” and the ministry is not only to those incarcerated, but also to their families.

The Chembelas, center, are pictured with key members of the prison ministry team. (Contributed photo)

Scattered throughout the country, Zimbabwe has a total of 138 prisons with a combined population of over 17,000 inmates, of which close to 5,000 are women. This translates to more than 25% of the total prison population being females, high by international standards.

As a spiritual entrepreneur with big visions, the Rev. Chembela has ambitious plans for his ministry group. Located in the capital area of Harare, they plan to cover prisons located within 100 miles of the capital. Already six prisons in that area are engaged in piloting the Adopt-A-Prison concept. For the remaining eight provinces of Zimbabwe, ministry groups are being recruited and trained.

An inspiring next step visualized by the Chembela couple is the idea of industrializing agriculture production in prisons. Victor Chembela explains the idea this way: “We suggest a new combined approach to addressing food shortage and idleness in prison by industrializing agriculture within correctional facilities. By equipping inmates with agricultural skill, we can enhance food security, promote self-sufficiency and foster rehabilitation.”

He further suggests starting with sunflower farming and the conversion of seeds to sunflower oil high in unsaturated fats. This could be an easy way of demonstrating the industrializing concept to inmates and prison authorities alike.

Violet and Victor Chembela and their staff and team of 20 volunteers are counting on the Zimbabwean government’s demonstrated openness to prison reform, in accordance with the Republic of Zimbabwe’s  official motto: “Unity, Freedom, Work.”

They are also counting on national and international interest and goodwill to support their efforts with ongoing prayers, investments, and financial contributions. This can be an opportune time for colonizer countries to pay back old debt owed to countries whose natural riches have been appropriated by former generations.

The Rev. Dr. Hans Hallundbaek, a minister in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), is a co-founder of both Rehabilitation through the Arts and the Interfaith Prison Partnership, an outreach of Hudson River Presbytery. He is an adjunct instructor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice and Marist College. He lives in Katonah, New York.