Community Voices: George Kapere
Traditional Herbalist

George Kapere is the President of Rwatha Rwampara Traditional Healers Together Against AIDS. He practices in Bugamba Subcounty, Uganda. His background as a traditional healer is unusual, as he worked as a printer for years and was a secretary/accountant before deciding to become a traditional health practitioner.  His wife, however, has been a Traditional Birth Attendant (TBA) for many years.  Attending the interview were several healers who were members of his support group and a woman who had come to see his wife for pre-natal care, all of whom were invited to join us.  George spoke English; Lydia Rukundo, Regional Program Officer for Theta, provided some translations. Rose Nakafeero from Theta also attended the interview.

Dr. Caitlin Mullin (C):  How does the community view your work and has that changed since your training by Theta?
George Kapere (G): The training has helped us to change, especially concerning health.  Long ago, they would treat patients in the local way. Nowadays we have changed, including cleanliness, preparation of medicine, and we must wash and use boiled water to mix the medicines.  We know how to prepare medicines and store them, and whenever we receive patients that we can’t treat, we refer them to community health centers and other traditional healers who can manage to treat whichever disease we can’t treat.

George Kapere in front of his home.

G: The plan is to meet them from time to time, to give them more training, and invite Theta and other organizations to give them more training.
C: So you will keep looking for opportunities for them to be trained?
G: Yes.

C: Some people associate traditional healing with witchcraft. What would you say to them?
G: There are two different things, there are traditional healers who only give certain medicines, and there are traditional healers who deal with witchcraft.  They are two different things, though one traditional healer can do both. There are some who treat only with herbal medicines, and some who treat with witchcraft.
C: Do you believe that some members of your community have been bewitched?
G:  For my side, I don’t believe it, but the secretary of our support group (sitting at his side) thinks it can happen.

C: Because you don’t believe in witchcraft, what would you say to those who believe they have been bewitched?  How would you explain their behavior?
G: I think those are cultural beliefs.  When you believe or when you feel you can be charmed, maybe you can be.  But on my side, I don’t believe.  Some believe it, I don’t know much about that.  I cannot support people who believe they are charmed, unless someone is given a poisonous herb and it affects some person.  That I can believe, and there are persons who treat that, or such a person can be referred to the hospital for treatment.
C: Are you aware of the practice of giving poisonous herbs in your community, that anyone would want to harm and use such herbs?
G: I have never received any cases with that complaint.
C:  What would you do if someone was brought to you and the family members believed that person was a victim of witchcraft?  What would you say to the family?
G: I would refer them to other traditional healers who can afford to help that person.
Rose asks some questions about the support group.
G: We have 82 members in our support group. Many of them came believing that they could get more help and they are getting nothing. Only trainings can help them.  After waiting a long while and getting nothing, some pull out.
C: So they come and they join the group because they want free assistance?
Lydia Rukundo (T): They come with expectations and don’t get anything for coming and some pull out.
C:  Are you training someone in your family?  Who are you training in herbal medicine?
T: I am training members in the family how to use herbs.  My wife is a traditional birth attendant, she knows herbs.

Mrs. Kapere with a patient who has come to her clinic for pre-natal care.

C: Who?

C:  How many children do you have?
G: 12
C: How many wives?
G: One.
C: Why did you choose to have only one wife?  Many of the healers have several wives.
H: I didn’t like two wives. I decided I wanted only one wife. I am a Catholic and Catholics must marry only one wife.
C:  How does the Catholic Church feel about your practice of herbal medicine?
G: They like it because I am helping my community
C: Are there any other challenges in your work?
G:  For me, I see that we need more training.  And as traditional healers, we would be much better if we had one place where we treated patients. We are scattered, but if we could have at least one place, where we could treat patients. Then, as my friend says, we need support financially because we can’t put up a building without money.

C:  Have you thought of any way that you might make money to sustain your group?
G: We have herbal medicines; if we had a clinic we could get money.  But we don’t have a clinic, and we don’t have enough money to build a clinic as a group.  If we had a clinic, perhaps we could get a small amount from the patients that could help us.
C: If you were 21 or 18 what would you choose as a career knowing what you know now?

Theta has encouraged traditional herbalists to grow their own gardens. In the south of Uganda, where the land is fertile, many have taken up the challenge of growing their own medicinal herbs. Kapere stands before a portion of his herb garden: behind is his banana grove.

C: So you would do what you are doing now but you would want more training?
G:  Yes, even now I need more training.  I am treating very few diseases.  If I were given more training, I would treat as many as I could.
Rose: What other activities does your group suggest implementing other than getting more training and a clinic that can bring income?
Secretary:  I think if we specialize in drama to do community awareness concerning HIV and AIDS, we could reach as many ages as possible, and probably we could get some token from the community and keep going. 
C: Do you have a drama group yet?
T: It is 2 years old.
C: Are they able to get some token from the community when they perform?
G: They received some.
Rose: Does the group have more women than men? I thought more women could have more ideas on income generating activities.  Because I don’t think you go for drama every week or every month, do you have any other plans besides drama?

G: We have planned to have a bee-keeping project. Support group members have also approached NAG, it is another NGO and they have shown interest in supporting us. Their beneficiaries usually receive goats, which they recycle. Members benefit, then they pass it on.  But it is not yet happened.  We wish and they hope that it will happen.
C: What do you mean by recycle?
G: Members benefit then they pass on to their colleagues like that.
They give goats to groups and groups are made up of individuals so at the end of the day every person is expected to benefit from that goat or it has delivered then they give a kid to one member.  Then whatever income they raise from meat they decide on how everyone can share it and everyone benefits.
C:  Here in Uganda cheese made from goat’s milk is not popular?
G:   No.
C: The milk and the cheese are not products here that could make money.
Lydia: He hopes they will be given more than one goat because in the past that is how they have been operating. And their goats are of high quality.  One delivers twice a year so that will probably increase the chance of people benefiting and they have marketing strategies to sell the goats so people have access to income.

George: I was very pleased when they told us you were coming.  That encourages us, even my fellow group members when they see we get visitors.  So, we share our discussion with other members and that encourages our members, knowing there are other groups that can contribute ideas, which will help our group for the future. And that gives me more encouragement that there are groups which will help me to learn how to build our group.

Now I am 60, and 15 years ago, I started this work. Before I was a printer, then I found my mother treating some people and she would ask me to pick some herbal medicines.  Two years later, I started treating people.
C: So you were a printer. For how many years?
G: 28 years.
C: That is unusual, that you became a traditional healer after so many years.
G:  I was a printer, and then I was an accountant and a typist.

George Kapare’s wife with the baby of a support group member delivered by Mrs. Kapare.  She, herself, is the mother of 12.