To curb practices that contradict human rights

African Union issues new guidelines to combat witchcraft and sorcery

  • Albinism is rejected by everyone. Archival

  • Albino child from Malawi. Archival

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African countries believe that people with albinism are ghosts who can fade away at any time, and that their body organs can treat terminally ill patients. Albinism is a condition in which a newborn comes out of his mother's womb with pale color and blonde hair, resulting from a lack of body pigment. They are hunted, killed and ostracized by society.

To this end, the African Union has issued new guidelines on combating witchcraft and sorcery and the resulting practices that contradict human rights. Over several years, Africa has seen a growth in community initiatives to address one of the continent's most widespread and least recognized causes of violence: witchcraft and sorcery.

A study published last month revealed that when people with albinism had the opportunity to tell their stories and show their common humanity, attitudes towards them changed. One community activist said that through communication with these people, people discovered that albinism is a "normal person who will not fade like a ghost, he is a normal and intelligent human being, he has all the human emotions, he has a good heart."

This is confirmed by the story of 14-year-old Goldalin, who scored the highest mark in Kenya's national primary school exams and made headlines in the East African country. Her father, Harrison Tanga, a biology teacher, recounts that during her birth, he heard nurses whispering among themselves when he passed by, and when he saw his wife, Matilda, holding a pale baby girl with blonde hair, he realized she had albinism. "My wife had a strange expression on her face, a mixture of fear and maybe something else," he says, but as a biology teacher, he was not bothered unlike many Kenyans who think the skin pigment disorder is a "curse" and call those suffering from the condition "ghost." Tanga went to his wife's bed and held the baby in his arms and said she was his golden child, immediately naming her "Goldalin".

Principles of Justice

The African Union Principles outline how member states deal with societal harms caused by witchcraft. Although unimplementable, it is an acknowledgement that the problem, which African societies have long been dealing with in silence, is incompatible with the principles of justice and equality shared in Africa.

The AU Guidelines include a wide range of treatments aimed at strengthening protocols already adopted by African states to promote gender equality, protect children, defend human rights, and root out witchcraft. Eight countries have laws that criminalize stigmatizing children or people with albinism as enchanted. Malawi, one of the world's poorest countries, achieved a modest reduction in violence by promoting civic awareness and more equal access to higher education.

Nigerien human rights activist Leo Egwi wrote: "Although accusations of witchcraft and witch hunt are against the law in many African countries, these legal provisions are rarely enforced." He notes that the new guidelines represent an important step towards "weakening the witch's grip and ritual beliefs in the minds of Africans."

Thousands of victims

The United Nations has recorded nearly 20,60 victims of witchcraft-related violence in <> countries around the world in the past decade, and this violence takes many forms in Africa, but targets children, women, the elderly and people with albinism, where those believed to be enchanted are ostracized, disinherited, mutilated, raped and ritualized killings. Such beliefs are often promoted during crises as an explanation for misfortune.

A study by the American University published in November revealed that "witchcraft beliefs are more prevalent in countries with weak institutions and low quality of governance." Witchcraft practices proliferate when public health services or educational and employment opportunities are limited.

Community-led projects have shown that breaking the barrier of fear of witchcraft requires changing perspectives. In Ghana, where women accused of sorcery are held in remote "witch camps," a group of civil society organizations found that promoting ownership and entrepreneurship in local communities helped build local charitable support for outcast women, and such activities reinstilled community trust in these women.

A study published last month revealed that when people with albinism had the opportunity to tell their stories and show their common humanity, attitudes towards them changed. Although accusations of witchcraft and witch hunt are against the law in many African countries, these legal provisions are rarely enforced.

The United Nations has recorded nearly 20,60 victims of violence linked to witchcraft fears or practices in <> countries around the world over the past decade.