Chewas head to Zambia for Kulamba
Malawians will form the largest contingent among over 1.8 million Chewas in southern Africa who are trekking to Katete, in Zambia, to pay homage to Chewa King Kalonga Gawa Undi during a key annual traditional ceremony known as Kulamba tomorrow.
Apart from the Zambian hosts and the Malawians, the other Chewas to converge on Katete—a booming town in Zambia’s Eastern Province—will be from Mozambique.
The delegations will all travel in a festive mood punctuated by colourful traditional dressing and traditional dance troupes, including the Chewa signature dance, gule wamkulu, resplendent in all shapes and sizes.
Border posts in Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia —where the Chewa King reigns—will be forced to bend some rigid operational rules.
The Immigration Officers will not necessarily demand passports from the Kulamba delegates. They will be happy to merely tick off names listed in registered travelling groups on stationery with the seals of the Kulamba organisers in the various countries.
Then a rare cacophony of noises will be heard, and permitted, across the border posts, as cows, sheep, goats, pigs, ducks and chickens will be among the freewheeling bonafide ‘baggage’ the Kulamba delegates will be heading to Katete with.
Some of these will be gifts the delegates will present to the regional King Kalonga Gawa Undi, who expects to be briefed by the senior Chiefs from the three countries on major issues and developments in their Chiefdoms.
The gifts, which predominantly comprise livestock and food but may also include ivory and artifacts, are an important part of the Kulamba ceremony. They are a salute to the King for leading them well and giving them opportunities to prosper in their communities; the King, in turn, redistributes the excess food to areas which experience poor harvests within his kingdom.
