Изыскания в области изучения и создания методики обучения человека возможностям и умению контролировать свою судьбу, управлять ею и направлять в нужное русло ведутся довольно давно. Как пример такой деятельности могу привести следующую цитату из открытых источников. Цитатасоздателя Курса: «С апреля месяца 1999 года в одном из отделов компании "Квантовые технологии" был задан старт некоему проекту под начальным тогда названием "Человек-Талисман". Проект предусматривал разработку программы подготовки людей с необычными способностями для уже тогда имевшей место быть потребности предоставления помощи некоторым предприятиям и организациям в их развитии. Ведущим проекта был член-корреспондент РАН Покровский В.Н. Направление было выбрано как всегда не вовремя. Нападки власть имущих в свое время подрубило многое под корень в исследованиях засознательных состояний, а также притормозило некоторые работы в квантовой физике в области приборных технологий. Однако в те "несладкие" два года удалось собрать некоторые основные аспекты ведения людей при обучении, что и легло в основу создания методики обучения». Программу обучения (содержание Курса Человека Силы) для зинтересованных в обучении Вы можете найти по переписке с Автором .
London's Metropolitan Police reports that cases of abuse where the child is accused of being a witch or possessed by an evil spirit are on the rise.
Thus far this year 27 allegations have been received -- up from 24 in 2013.
There were 19 such cases reported in 2012, and 9 in 2011. Some 148 cases have been referred to the Metropolitan Police since 2004.
The rise in the number of reports is likely due to greater awareness among social workers, healthcare staff, teachers, pastors and others.
However, police believe many more cases are kept hidden in families and communities.
Parents, other guardians, and in several cases pastors and church members who believe a child is possessed often resort to physical abuse in order to try and get the spirits to leave.
New guidance has now been issued on how to spot children at risk of abuse linked to witchcraft.
On October 8, the Metropolitan Police Service and CCPAS, the Churches' Child Protection Advisory Service, hosted a multi-agency event at London's City Hall to raise awareness of child abuse linked to faith or belief.
Speaking ahead of the conference, Det Supt Terry Sharpe explained
"Abuse linked to belief is a horrific crime which is condemned by people of all cultures, communities and faiths.
"A number of high-profile investigations brought the issue of ritual abuse and witchcraft into the headlines but it is important that professionals are clear about the signs to look for.
"Families or carers genuinely believe that the victim has been completely taken over by the devil or an evil spirit, which is often supported by someone who within the community has portrayed themselves as an authority on faith and belief.
"Regardless of the beliefs of the abusers, child abuse is child abuse. Our role is to safeguard children, not challenge beliefs. We investigate crimes against children, but our main aim is to prevent abuse in the first place. This is a hidden crime and we can only prevent it by working in partnership with the community. Project Violet aims to build trust with communities and emphasise that child protection is everyone's responsibility."
A training film aimed at all front-line professionals who work with children was launched at the event. The DVD, commissioned by our Project Violet team in conjunction with CCPAS, advises how to recognise the signs that a child may be suffering, or is likely to suffer, significant harm from abuse linked to witchcraft and spirit possession.
According to CCPAS the training DVD will be made provided to Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCBs) so they may make it available to social workers and other front line staff.
High-Profile Cases
High-profile cases include Victoria Climbie, whose great-aunt and her boyfriend -- along with their pastor -- believed the girl was demon-possessed.
Beaten, burned with cigarettes and forced to sleep in a bathtub, the 8-year-old girl died in February, 2000 -- with 128 injuries on her body.
In 2001 the headless, limbless body of a boy aged between five and six was found floating in the river Thames.
Evidence strongly suggests the boy was sacrificed in a Muti ritual.
In 2010, 15-year-old Kristy Bamu was tortured for three days by his sister and his boyfriend after being accused of witchcraft, and was subsequently drowned in a bathtub during an exorcism ritual.
Human Trafficking
In 2005 a leaked police report revealed that children are being trafficked into the country in order to be killed as human sacrifices:
A confidential report into the sacrifice and abuse of children at African churches describes how pastors are profiting from the trafficking of black boys into Britain.
Uncircumcised boys are being smuggled into the country for human sacrifice by fundamentalist sects whose members believe that their ritual killing will enhance spells.
Types of Witchcraft
Most reported cases involve what is known as "traditional witchcraft" as opposed to "contemporary witchcraft."
Traditional Witchcraft, such as performed by shamans or witch doctors, is a magical practice -- not a religion. However, it can have religious elements.
Contemporary Witchcraft is one of many types of neo-Paganism. It is religion within the broader context of occultism.
Many Countries
The problem of children who are accused of witchcraft is not limited to England. But after several high-profile cases there is a greater awareness -- and official response -- that highlights such cases.
Immigration also plays a role in the rise of reports -- as many immigrants bring along various beliefs and superstitions.
Many Christian churches in Africa are part of the problem as well -- as traditional beliefs are mingled with Christian theology regarding demons and exorcism.
An increasing number of children in Africa accused of witchcraft by pastors and then tortured or killed, often by family members. Pastors were involved in half of 200 cases of "witch children" reviewed by the AP, and 13 churches were named in the case files.
Some of the churches involved are renegade local branches of international franchises. Their parishioners take literally the Biblical exhortation, "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live."
In 2010 UNICEF, the United Nations' children's charity, said that accusing children of sorcery was a fairly new and growing trend in Africa, despite long-held traditional and mystic beliefs on the continent.
Where previously elderly women were accused, today the focus more often falls on young children, often some of the most vulnerable, such as orphans, disabled or poor.
Throughout Africa, the vast majority of children accused of witchcraft are not murdered but -- if torture has not helped remove the evil spirits -- are expelled from their homes and communities.
Plan to Tackle Child Abuse Linked to Faith or Belief
The UK government has announced plans to tackle the "wall of silence" around the abuse and neglect of children accused of witchcraft, following the brutal murder of Kristy Bamu, who was tortured to death in London in 2010 by his sister and her partner after they said he was a witch.
Under the new plans, the government aims to identify and prosecute more offenders by raising awareness of faith-based abuse and its links to trafficking, missing children and sexual exploitation or grooming. The goal is also to help the victims give evidence.
Tim Loughton, the children's minister, said: "Child abuse is appalling and unacceptable wherever it occurs and in whatever form it takes. Abuse linked to faith or belief in spirits, witchcraft or possession is a horrific crime, condemned by people of all cultures, communities and faiths — but there has been a wall of silence around its scale and extent.
"It is not our job to challenge people's beliefs but it is our job to protect children. There can never be a blind eye turned to violence or emotional abuse or even the smallest risk that religious beliefs will lead to young people being harmed."
Last March a couple convicted for torturing and murdering 15-year-old Kristy Bamu, whom they accused of using witchcraft against them, was jailed for life.
BBC Newsnight report on the torture murder of teenager Kristy Bamu, accused by his family of involvement in witchcraft.
Football coach Eric Bikubi, 28, has been ordered to serve at least 30 years. His partner, Magalie Bamu, 29, will serve a minimum of 25 years.
The pair was convicted for murdering the boy in what has been referred to as a 'completely feral' attack.
Believing that Kristy was trying to bewitch them, the couple beat and tortured him for three days, using used knives, sticks, kitchen tiles, metal bars, a pair of pliers, a hammer and a chisel. Then they drowned him in their bathtub.
There is very little information available about the scale of such abuse.
In London there have been 81 recorded cases of children being abused as part of religious practice over the past 10 years but police and church groups are convinced it is under-reported.
Previous research suggests that the practice is not confined to African communities and exists in different forms across southern Asia and parts of Europe within some Christian sects but also some Hindu and Muslim communities.
Mr Loughton announced a new action plan drawn up after discussions between police, child welfare charities and faith groups including churches.
It calls for new social workers and teachers to be taught about the issue as part of their training as well as new measures to spread awareness within religious groups.
Police are being given guidance drawn up by specialists at Scotland Yard setting out some of the possible warning signs, including certain types of injuries children may bear.
Mr Loughton said it was clear the full extent of the abuse was being underestimated. [...]
Cases investigated in London so far this year include one in which a boy was assaulted because his parents believed he was bringing bad luck and another forced to drink a noxious substance supposedly to rid him of evil spirits.
Scotland Yard says it has conducted 83 investigations into cases of faith-based child abuse in the past decade including those of Victoria Climbie who was eight when she was murdered in 2000 and the headless torso of "Adam", a five or six-year-old boy, which was found in the Thames in 2001.
Ministers are concerned that although the investigations number just a few dozen, other abuse is going on, "under-reported and misunderstood".
The National Action Plan to Tackle Child Abuse Linked to Faith or Belief was drawn up with faith leaders, charities, the police and social workers.
It urges closer engagement with local communities and churches, better training for social workers and police and better psychological and therapeutic support for victims.
It also aims to secure prosecutions through supporting victims to give evidence in court and more awareness of how faith-based abuse links with other crimes such as child trafficking and sexual exploitation.
The government admits more research is needed before it can act effectively to protect children - the last study was in 2006 and looked at 38 cases involving 47 children from Africa, South Asia and Europe, all of whom had been abused in the name of possession or witchcraft. So a key element of the action plan is to conduct further research.
Other measures include greater efforts to listen to the voices of young people in the affected communities and to build up networks of faith leader and community "champions" against this kind of abuse.
According to police and migrant advisory services, witchcraft ceremonies are spreading because of the increasing number of unregulated back street churches and mosques that have broken away from the mainstream places of worship to cater for millions of new immigrants from Africa, South Asia and the Caribbean countries, providing a link to their birth countries, cultures and customs.
Many of these horrific events are filmed and can be found on videos selling for a couple of pounds in ethnic shops and market stalls in London. What they show is terrified children, accused of witchcraft, being freed of 'demons'. In one video I bought, a white-robed pastor is shown hitting a five-year-old boy with a long stick as the congregation chants approval.
His mother cries, but is held back from freeing her son because it is thought ? by the prayergoers ? to be the best thing for the family and their child. They are scenes which police believe are being repeated week after week in cities such as London, Birmingham, Leicester and Manchester.
But where do these cultural practices become blatant child cruelty punishable by the law?
Rachel Takens-Milne, from Trust For London, a charity that works to combat child abuse linked to witchcraft, says that cases such as that of Kristy Bamu are still rare.
But she added: 'It doesn't have to be at this extreme to be abuse. Calling a child a witch and publicly humiliating them is itself a form of abuse.'
And, worryingly, Detective Superintendent Terry Sharpe of Scotland Yard says that witchcraft-linked crime is 'far more prevalent' in this country than official figures suggest.
'Children have been physically beaten and forced to drink unknown liquids in rituals to rid them of evil spirits. They have been starved and deprived of sleep.
'Children have been blindfolded and had their hair cut off. They have had liquid poured on their genitals and been murdered,' he said after the Kristy case.
"Child abuse is appalling and unacceptable wherever it occurs and in whatever form it takes. Abuse linked to faith or belief in spirits, witchcraft or possession is a horrific crime, condemned by people of all cultures, communities and faiths — but there has been a 'wall of silence' around its scale and extent. It is not our job to challenge people's beliefs but it is our job to protect children," Children's Minister Tim Loughton. "There can never be a blind eye turned to violence or emotional abuse or even the smallest risk that that religious beliefs will lead to young people being harmed."
However the Minister pointed out that there is no "silver bullet" in resolving this. "This plan will help people recognise and know how to act on evidence, concerns and signs that a child's health and safety is being threatened. Everyone working with children has a responsibility to recognise and know how to act on evidence that a children is being abused," he added.
Key Messages: child abuse linked to faith or belief
Key messages from the national action plan to tackle child abuse linked to faith or belief:
Child abuse is never acceptable wherever it occurs and whatever form it takes. Abuse linked to belief, including belief in witchcraft or possession, is a horrific crime which is condemned by people of all cultures, communities and faiths. [The Government / my organisation] applauds the work being done in communities to tackle this form of abuse and to stand up to the perpetrators.
• Child abuse is condemned by people of all cultures, communities and faiths, and is never acceptable under any circumstances. Child abuse related to belief includes inflicting physical violence or emotional harm on a child by stigmatising or labelling them as evil or as a witch. Where this type of abuse occurs it causes great distress and suffering to the child.
• Everyone working or in contact with children has a responsibility to recognise and know how to act on evidence, concerns and signs that a child's health, development and safety is being or may be threatened, especially when they suffer or are likely to suffer significant harm.
• Standard child safeguarding procedures apply and must always be followed in all cases where abuse or neglect is suspected including those that may be related to particular belief systems.
•The number of cases of child abuse linked to a belief in spirits, possession and witchcraft is small, but where it occurs the impact on the child is great, causing much distress and suffering to the child. It is likely that a proportion of this type of abuse remains unreported.
Research commissioned by the DfE in 2006 reviewed child abuse cases that had occurred between 2000 and 2005 to identify any cases where the abuse was linked to accusations of possession or witchcraft. 38 cases involving 47 children were found to be relevant and sufficiently well documented. The children came from a variety of backgrounds including African, South Asian and European.
• Child abuse linked to faith or belief may occur where a child is treated as a scapegoat for perceived failure. Whilst specific beliefs, practices, terms or forms of abuse may exist, the underlying reasons for the abuse are often similar to other contexts in which children become at risk. These reasons can include family stress, deprivation, domestic violence, substance abuse and mental health problems. Children who are different in some way, perhaps because they have a disability or learning difficulty, an illness or are exceptionally bright, can also be targeted in this kind of abuse.
Religion News Blog -- A couple convicted for torturing and murdering a 15-year-old boy they accused of using witchcraft have been jailed for life.
Football coach Eric Bikubi, 28, has been ordered to serve at least 30 years. His partner, Magalie Bamu, 29, will serve a minimum of 25 years.
The pair was convicted for murdering Magalie's 15-year-old brother in what has been referred to as a 'completely feral' attack.
Believing that Kristy was trying to bewitch them, the couple beat and tortured him for three days, using used knives, sticks, kitchen tiles, metal bars, a pair of pliers, a hammer and a chisel. The boy was also denied food.
Kristy's two brothers (13 and 22) and two sisters (11 and 20), who had joined him during on a vacation from France to their older sister, were forced to participate in his beatings. Initially the sibblings were accused on Kindoki (witchcraft) as well, but after they 'confessed' to being witches, the attacks focused on Kristy, who had refused to confess.
According to court records the boy was in such pain that he 'begged to die." He finally drowned in a bathtub on Christmas Day 2010, during an exorcism ritual.
During sentencing Judge David Paget said he accepted Bikubi's defence that he had brain damage and had believed that Kristy was a witch.
But he added "The belief in witchcraft, however genuine, cannot excuse an assault to another person, let alone the killing of another human being."
Paget told Magalie Bamu that he rejected her denial of a belief in witchcraft. During the trial Bamu had claimed Bikubi forced her to attack her brother.
Bikubi pleaded guilty to two counts of causing actual bodily harm to the girls. Bamu denied the assaults but was found guilty.
Scotland Yard has investigated 83 cases involving abuse resulting from ritualistic or faith-based beliefs, and brought 17 prosecutions, over the last 10 years.
Detective Superintendent Terry Sharpe said: "This is a hidden and under-reported crime and therefore difficult to deal with in terms of protecting potential victims from harm."
Save the Children's head of child protection, Bill Bell, said: "This case must serve as a wake-up call to governments and local authorities to do more to prevent this kind of terrible abuse from happening to children in future."
Eric Bikubi, 28, and Magalie Bamu, aged 29, from Newham, east London, had denied killing Bamu's 15-year-old brother Kristy.
Kristy drowned in a bath on Christmas Day in 2010, during torture to produce exorcism, an Old Bailey jury heard.
Bikubi had admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, but the prosecution rejected his plea.
The pair, who are both originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo, were remanded in custody and are due to be sentenced on Monday. [...]
Judge David Paget, who was presiding over his last trial before retiring, told the jury of seven women and five men the case was so "harrowing" he was exempting them from jury service for the rest of their lives.
"It is a case we will all remember," he told them. "Court staff will speak to you and offer help to you."
During the trial, jurors heard Kristy was in such pain after three days of attacks by Bikubi and Bamu, who used knives, sticks, metal bars and a hammer and chisel, that he "begged to die", before slipping under the water.
Kristy had been killed while he and his siblings were visiting Bikubi and Bamu for Christmas, the court was told.
During the stay, Bikubi turned on them, accusing them of bringing "kindoki" - or witchcraft - into his home.
He then beat all three of them and forced other children to join in with the attacks, the jury heard.
But it was Kristy who became the focus of the defendant's attention, the prosecution said.
Bamu and football coach Bikubi believed he had cast spells on another child in the family, the Old Bailey heard.
Kristy had refused to admit to sorcery and witchcraft and his punishments, in a "deliverance" ceremony, became more horrendous until he admitted to being a sorcerer.
Detective Superintendent Terry Sharpe tells reporters that 15-year-old Kristy Bamu was 'brutally tortured' before being murdered as footage from inside the flat where he was murdered by his sister and her partner is seen for the first time. [see video above]
Speaking outside court, DSI Sharpe said the Metroplitan police had carried out extensive work to understand and tackle "belief-based child abuse", which includes witchcraft and spirit possession.
Jury members wept as a statement was read out from Kristy's father Pierre Bamu. In it he lamented that his family had been robbed not just of a son, but also a daughter and a son-in-law following the murder.
"Kristy died in unimaginable circumstances at the hands of people who he loved and trusted," Mr Bamu said. "People who we all loved and trusted. To know that Kristy's own sister, Magalie, did nothing to save Kristy makes the pain that much worse. We are still unaware of the full extent of the brutality - we cannot bring ourselves to hear it."
In a remarkable showing of magnanimity, Mr Bamu said he must forgive his son's killers for the sake of his family. "We will never forget, but to put our lives back into sync we must forgive," he said.
In the living room, investigators say they found two dog skulls and a dog skeleton that had been gold-leafed.
They then walked into the kitchen and found two dog skeletons on the counter and a dog's head in the freezer.
Authorities say the scene was even more sickening when they walked into the home's backyard.
They found dog fragments charred in a fire pit and chicken parts hanging from a tree. Two live chickens and another dog head were also found in the back.
Officials say they found books on witchcraft and the occult, as well as marijuana, a gun, and various knives and machetes.
Expert Dr Richard Hoskins said the attack went way beyond accepted practices in Democratic Republic of Congo, where the family originate from.
He told the jury: "In this case the evidence that I've read is something completely feral, it's wild, it's completely out of control. It's beyond the normal patterns that exist in the Congo."
Ms Bamu and her boyfriend Mr Bikubi are accused of murdering Kristy on Christmas Day because they thought he was affected by an "evil force called kindoki". [...]
[Dr. Hoskins said] that over the last 15 years the "child witch phenomenon" has emerged where children were accused of being possessed. He said belief in kindoki was "all pervasive" in Congolese society regardless of someone's standard of education or social class.
Dr Hoskins told the court that Kristy wetting himself could have been the trigger for the alleged violence. He said: "The trigger that needs to occur for people to think someone is possessed by kindoki can be anything out of the ordinary. Bed-wetting is a classic example of this."
Other factors could have been Kristy's older brother Yves' autism, an allergic reaction that made Yves' lip swell or their younger brother having problems getting out of bed, the court heard.
Note: Our Witchcraft news tracker includes news items about a wide variety of diverse movements reported in the media as related to, or involved in, 'witchcraft.' It also includes news articles on the plight of alleged witches.
A couple accused of torturing and killing a 15-year-old boy were "obsessed" with witchcraft and warned the boy's parents they would kill him, his sister has told a court.
Kelly Bamu, 21, struggled to contain her emotions at the Old Bailey as she was shown weapons the court heard had been used to abuse her, her brother and her sister because Eric Bikubi and Magalie Bamu believed they were witches.
Kristy Bamu, 15, was found dead in a bath at a blood-covered flat in Forest Gate, east London, on Christmas Day 2010. He had 101 injuries and was covered in deep cuts and bruising, and an "armoury" of weapons was found nearby, the court was told.
He and four siblings were visiting their sister Magalie from Paris for the Christmas holidays when Magalie and her partner became convinced they were witches, the court heard.
Wicca / Witchcraft
Note: Our Witchcraft news tracker includes news items about a wide variety of diverse movements reported in the media as 'witchcraft.' It also includes news articles on the plight of alleged witches.
Shown a metal bar, Kelly told the court that during several days of extreme violence Bikubi had used it to hit Kristy about his body and head, and had repeatedly shoved it into his mouth, dislodging a tooth.
"Eric shoved it as hard as he could, with such force that it broke his tooth," she said. "Eric said, 'Get on your knees. Get on your knees.'"
Asked if Kristy had voluntarily opened his mouth, she said: "Kristy had opened his mouth. He said it hurt, but [Bikubi], he didn't care. He did it a number of times. He's sick," she said.
Kelly said that during the violence — which was also directed at her and a sister but focused on Kristy — siblings were recruited to harm the 15-year-old.
Kelly was told to fetch some pliers and twist Kristy's ear, she told the court. "As if that wasn't enough, all this blood all over the house," she said.
Kelly was reprimanded when she did not do enough to hurt her brother, she said. "I couldn't bring myself to do it, but he said if I didn't do it, 'I'm going to do the same thing to you.'" [...]
She described how bottles were smashed over her brother's head, and how Bikubi headbutted and punched him. [...]
As Kelly told the court that tiles had been smashed repeatedly over her brother's head, Magalie began sobbing loudly in the dock. [...]
Bikubi denies murder but admits manslaughter on grounds of diminished responsibility, and has pleaded guilty to two counts of actual bodily harm. Magalie Bamu, 28, denies murder and two counts of actual bodily harm. The trial continues.
A teenage boy underwent "unimaginable physical torture" before being drowned by his sister and her partner because they believed he was a sorcerer who was practising witchcraft, a court heard on Thursday.
Eric Bikubi and Magalie Bamu, both 28, killed 15-year-old Kristy Bamu in their east London flat after violently abusing him for several days, and repeatedly attacked the victim's two sisters, whom they accused of sorcery, the Old Bailey heard on the opening day of the trial.
Over four days Kristy, who was visiting his sister from France, was tortured with metal bars, wooden sticks, a hammer and a pair of pliers in a "prolonged attack of unspeakable savagery and brutality", the court was told.
Wicca / Witchcraft
Note: Our Witchcraft news tracker includes news items about a wide variety of diverse movements reported in the media as 'witchcraft.' It also includes news articles on the plight of alleged witches.
After being denied sleep and food and having being repeatedly attacked, Kristy admitted to being a sorcerer in the hope that the violence would stop. He finally begged to be allowed to die.
On Christmas Day 2010 the defendants, who both deny murder, allegedly forced the boy and his siblings into a bath, submerging him in water. Pathologist reports revealed he suffered 101 injuries, and died as a result of drowning and the injuries.
When Kristy was found by paramedics in the eighth-floor flat in Forest Gate, his head, face, back and arms were covered in deep cuts and bruises, and several of his teeth were missing.
Kristy and four siblings were sent by their parents, from their home in Paris, to see their sister and his partner on 16 December. A few days passed "pleasantly enough", then Bikubi said some of the children were possessed by spirits and were having an evil influence on a younger child in the house, it is claimed.
"Despite her own siblings' denials that they were involved in witchcraft, Magalie Bamu joined her boyfriend in repeating these fantastic claims and participating in the assaults," said Brian Altman QC, prosecuting.
The court was told that over a period of days the pair, originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo, attempted to exorcise evil spirits they believed were in three of the children — Kristy, his sister Kelly, 20, and their 11-year-old sister, who cannot be named. Bikubi refused "to let them eat, drink or sleep for days, while the punishments became increasingly violent, with [the attackers] using the many implements found in the flat as weapons of torture", Altman said.
During their ordeal the siblings were forced to pray and chant throughout several nights and, in a "staggering act of depravity and cruelty", the defendants recruited sibling against sibling as "vehicles for their violence", said Altman.
Kristy became the focus of Bikubi's attention, the court heard. He allegedly struck the boy with a hammer in the face, knocking out his teeth; on another occasion he shoved a metal bar into the teenager's mouth, the court heard.
When Kelly attempted to hit her brother using something light, she was ordered to use a heavier implement. In a desperate attempt to prevent any further suffering, Kristy and his two sisters eventually admitted to being sorcerers, said Altman. "As Kristy's injuries became ever more severe he even pleaded to be allowed to die," he added.
When paramedics got to the flat just after midday on Christmas Day 2010, there was blood across walls, furniture, ceiling and floor. [...more...]
ACCRA, 13 October 2011 (IRIN) - Ghana's government is looking at ways to support people accused of witchcraft - mainly women and children banished by their communities to "witches' camps" in the north - and to reintegrate them in their home villages.
Currently around 1,000 women and 700 children are living in six camps in northern Ghana, where they have found refuge from threats and violence from people in their home communities after being labelled witches and blamed for causing misfortune to others. In most cases the residents were taken to the camps by family members. A small number of men are also banished to the camps as "wizards", according to Hajia Hawawu Boya Gariba, Ghana's deputy minister for women and children's affairs.
Belief in witchcraft is widespread in Africa - and other parts of the world - but in sub-Saharan Africa accusationsagainstchildren are a recent and growing phenomena, according to a UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) report released last year.
The camps are located in remote areas and the residents usually live in basic conditions in mud huts without electricity, with limited access to food, water or medicine. Local reports detail women going hungry, residents having to walk kilometres to collect water, and children being unable to attend school. The camps are run by managers - usually the people who founded them - who rely on funding from NGOs and private donations to operate the facilities. Sometimes camp managers also take payment such as food from residents.
While the issue of "witches' camps" is nothing new - they have been around for decades - recent media reports have spurred the government to action. "As a government we are embarrassed that we have these camps in our country - especially as our human rights record will be scrutinized as far as this is concerned," Gariba said.
Stigma
A meeting of government officials, accused women from the camps, camp managers, NGOs and doctors in Accra on 8 September considered what action should be taken to improve the situation for camp residents. Gariba said the government was working with the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) to improve conditions in the camps by providing food and other support to the inmates, then in the long-term the government would look at repatriating the residents to their home villages and shutting down the camps.
This will include educating communities back home so they understand the banished women are not actually witches, said Gariba, who has also suggested drafting legislation to make it illegal to accuse people of witchcraft.
Akwasi Osei, the chief psychiatrist in Ghana's national health service, who helped initiate the meeting, emphasized the need for community education. "Right now if you [repatriate accused witches] you can be sure they will be lynched when they go back home," he said. "You have to prepare [their] society and help them understand that it's not these women who were the causes of [misfortune]."
A second meeting later this month will firm up a plan of action to eventually disband the camps, Gariba said.
Reluctant to leave
Not everyone thinks trying to close the camps is a good idea. Bilabim Jakper, 60, has lived in the Nabuli "witches' camp", Gushegu District, northern Ghana, for the past nine years and says she wants to stay put.
Her husband died 15 years ago, and after that her former husband's younger brother accused her of witchcraft. "He told family members I attempted to kill him spiritually in the night?¦ Later the whole village heard about the incident and concluded I was a witch. They beat me up and threatened to kill me."
She escaped and eventually found her way to Nabuli. She said she does not believe her original community would accept her back. "They say I am a bad omen to my family. Here is my home?¦ The people here are my friends and relatives now."
Alhassan Sayibu, who has managed the Nyani "witches' camp" in northern Ghana for 10 years since taking over from his father, said the risk of violence against so-called witches and wizards in their original communities was too high and the camps should not be closed.
"If something bad happens they [could] be accused [again]. Three months ago [people in one community] broke someone's hand after she was sent back there and she was brought back here again. Even men are beaten and returned here," Syibu said.
Gariba suggested if some inmates were still unable to return after their original communities were educated, the camps could be redeveloped into care centres.
Who are the accused?
Chief psychiatrist Osei said women accused of witchcraft are generally mentally ill - suffering depression, dementia or schizophrenia. Women were also usually easy targets when people were looking for a scapegoat, he said. "Very often [accused witches are] vulnerable women who are probably widowed or childless?¦ or are poor and illiterate," he said.
Emmanuel Dobson, executive director of Christian Outreach Fellowship, an NGO providing food, medicine and accommodation to people in the witches' camps, agreed that mainly older, uneducated women were targeted. He also pointed to the patriarchal culture in northern Ghana as a factor in their vulnerability. "When a man marries a woman she becomes his property. The woman's family then has less authority over the life of the woman, and the woman is left helpless [if] her husband is not able to advocate for her."
Note: Religion News Blog's Witchcraft news tracker includes news items about a wide variety of diverse movements reported in the media as 'witchcraft.' It also includes news articles on the plight of alleged witches.
The 'witchcraft' reported in this story is not related to Neo-Pagan Witchcraft.
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