Sungusungu emerged among the Sukuma in 1982 as a local level institution, with the
major aim of protecting property and enforcing customary laws. The major factor that
contributed to the formation of the Sungusungu was the increase in number of cattle rustlers in
Sukumaland. The war with neighboring Uganda in 1979 had caused an increase in lawlessness
and crime in Tanzania. At the same time, the justice system was seen as “too corrupt” and unable to control crime and protect the communities (Abrahams 1987; Bukurura 1994:5). After the war with Uganda ended, there were an influx of young and unemployed males, and a lot of guns around. By the early 1980s, there were frequent cattle raids in Sukumaland (the most prized possession among the Sukuma). Armed cattle theft had caused a lot of fear and anxiety that
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prompted the Sukuma to design a justice institution to protect their cattle, and other property (Abraham 1987; Bukurura 1994).
Sungusungu is a Swahili25 word for a species of an aggressive, large black biting ant. Just like the black aunt, when established, Sungusungu were very aggressive in controlling cattle rustlers. They used poison arrows with swift and severe punishments (Paciotti and Hadley 2004). Among the Sukuma, the word Sungusungu relates to Sukuma word “busungu” which means poison or labor pain.26 The use of word Sungusungu has been associated with poison-tipped arrows that are used by the Sungusungu soldiers (Bukurura 1996). In Sukuma language,
Sungusungu groups are often referred to as basalama, meaning “the people of peace” who
represent “the army of ancestors.”
Although Sungusungu was initially a security institutions targeted on combating cattle rustling, it was eventually adapted to deal with enforcement of customary laws, and to handle all kinds of disputes including marriage and divorce, witch trials, debts, land and water disputes, and mediate other kinds of disputes. In the case of water management, Sungusungu members said in focus group discussions that they punish those who break the rules adopted to develop and manage water resources. They also work hand in hand with the existing customary institution (such as Dagashida) to enact and enforce customary laws. Sungusungu was able to spread rapidly throughout the country, and within a year of its establishment, Sungusungu had
transformed into a large-scale system, and was an ethnic duty among the Sukuma (Paciotti and Hadley 2004:119).
25 Swahili is Tanzania’s national language.
26Other studies observed that it is possible that the “biting power” of the Sungusungu is combined with a reference
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The Sungusungu a have hierarchy of leadership starting with the chief (Ntemi), who is a chairman of the Sungusungu. The Sungusungu chairman is usually a charismatic leader who is in charge of all Sungusungu activities, leads meetings, and makes final decisions based on the views of majority. He is also the first person to be notified whenever there is a problem in the village. The assistant chief (Ntwale), works hand in hand with a chief and presides when the chief is absent. The secretary (Katibu) is in charge of documenting and keeping records of all
Sungusungu activities, including writing names of those who attend the meeting, taking minutes,
and documenting the details of the cases discussed and the punishment given.
The chief commander (Kamanda mkuu) is responsible for organizing the secret policing operation of Sungusungu. He arrests offenders in the village, prosecutes them, and leads trials at the Sungusungu meetings. There are also assistant commanders (Makamanda wasaidizi),
advisors of the chief (Banamhala ba Ntemi), advisors of the sub-chief (Banamhala ba Ntwale) and the Sungusungu council itself (Bunge la Sungusungu). The council comprises of ordinary members of Sungusungu. The ordinary members of the Sungusungu, especially those who are younger, are often referred to as askari, a Swahili word for soldiers (Abraham 1987). The askari are in charge with the responsibility of tracking down those who break customary laws,
patrolling the community, investigating offences, and finding witnesses for ongoing cases. Figure 5.11 presents Sungusungu’s hierarchy of leadership as explained above. All members of
Sungusungu are to take an oath not to reveal the secrets of Sungusungu to anyone. And the
leaders of Sungusungu are “immunized” by traditional medicines to make them strong, fearless, and to protect them (Heald 2002).
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Figure 5. 11: Sungusungu Hierarchy of Leadership
Traditionally, the Sungusungu chief has the divine power to stop calamities in the
community by communicating with ancestral spirits. For example, in a situations where public water sources cease to produce water, or if there is a reduction in the flow of water, Sungusungu, with instructions from the chief (after consulting with the ancestral spirits), may put traditional medicine into the water source. As they use the medicine, they are supposed to say “we have locked all the bad winds that pushes away water and clouds, and we are asking for water” (eleloyaga elyaboubi dolilugalaga, dolelomba dopandeke minzei).
Chief (Ntemi)
Secretary (Katibu)
Chief Commander (Kamanda mkuu) Sub-Chief (Ntwale)
Advisors for Chief (Banamhala ba Ntemi)
Advisors for Sub-Chief (Banamhala ba Ntwale)
Assistant Commanders (Makamanda wasaidizi)
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After doing this, the water source should produce more water. But Sungusungu members said that they never put traditional medicines in private wells because it was against state law. They said “you may be sent to jail for doing so.” If the chief and Sungusungu’s efforts doesn’t solve the problem, then Sungusungu may decide to consult witch-doctors for “expert” help. One
Sungusungu chief said“it works like a referral hospital, if one hospital cannot treat your disease, then you may be referred to another hospital.”
Punishments imposed by Sungusungu range from fines to ostracism, and to eviction from the village. Offenders, who are brought to Sungusungu, plead guilty, and confess their wrong doings, are fined. Those who refuse to confess or pay the fine face ostracism. Sungusungu uses ostracism for two major reasons: first to punish the offender and second to make the offender confess and change his or her behavior to conform to customary norms. Once Sungusungu decides to ostracize an individual, they have to write a letter to the Village Executive Officer (VEO) to ask for his/her permission. The VEO will then discuss the issue with the village council and decide whether to grant Sungusungu`s request. If they approve the decision to ostracize an individual, the Sungusungu commanders will blow a gourd-stem whistle (kalulu) early in the morning so everyone in the community can hear. Then the Chief Commander will announce the name of the individual to be ostracized. From that moment, all community members are forbidden to interact or cooperate with the offender or his/her family. Those who continue to interact with the offender are reported to Sungusungu and they too may become ostracized. As one water-user group member explained in focus group discussion:
A drunken man was seen by one of the villagers urinating by the drinking water source on his way from drinking local beer. The man was reported to Sungusungu. He denied
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the charges and refused to pay the fine. The next day the man and his family were ostracized. No one in the village would talk to him, visit his house, or offer any help to him. He was completely isolated. He had to beg for forgiveness and pay the fine.
The story of a drunken man indicates that ostracism is a powerful sanction. I observed that most of people in the Bariadi district depend on mutual service for their livelihood, so it is almost impossible for them to live in isolation. Moreover, ostracism is effective because most of villagers cooperate with Sungusungu, a factor that persuades many ostracized individuals to confess and pay their fine. Sungusungu group members explained that they try to protect people from false accusation by checking the validity of accusations. This is done through spying and gathering information from different community members who had witnessed the accused breaking the law. As one Sungusungu member explained in focus group discussion:
We live in small communities where almost everybody knows each other. In most cases, whatever an individual does, is seen by other people around him or her. Once we receive an accusation about a particular individual, we check to make sure that an individual is not falsely accused of committing an offence. We gather information from witnesses and investigate the case. It is not possible for ten or twenty people in the village to wrongly accuse the same person for the same wrong doing.
A Sungusungu commander said in an interview that Sungusungu protect the anonymity of people who report the offender, and those who make judgments about the offence. They do so because the offender cannot single out who is the accuser or judge, therefore it is not possible for the accused to revenge or take action against anybody.
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Normally, Sungusungu use the phrase “the world has seen you” (obonagwa se) meaning that “everybody saw you breaking the rule” (without mentioning the name of the accuser). In this way, everyone is protected from revenge.
The members of Sungusungu pointed out that the most important thing to them is not the fine paid by offenders, it is the offenders’ personal confession that they have done something wrong. If the offender doesn’t want to confess, but wants to pay the fine, Sungusungu will not accept this payment but will ostracize them until they confess. Once the ostracized individual confesses and agrees to pay the fine, the commanders blows the gourd-stem whistle (kalulu) again to notify community members that the ostracized individual has now become “a man of peace” (nsalama).
Enactment of new laws by Sungusungu can occur if there is a new problem that cannot be addressed by existing laws. After Sungusungu have proposed a new law, they send it to the Village Executive Officer (VEO) for approval. One VEO said in an interview that it is against state law for the Sungusungu to make and implement laws without permission from local government officials.27 After the law is approved by the VEO, Sungusungu can call a general village meeting and announce the new law and its penalty.