Victims of accusations of witchcraft

Resource Person: Dr. Jean La Fontaine

The persecution of accused witches continues today in communities around the globe. It is particularly prevalent in Africa. It is very important to distinguish between those accused of being witches and people who are often called witch-doctors but are sorcerers or black magicians, not witches. Sorcerers may be responsible for the murder of individuals, in order to use their body parts for powerful magic (known as muti, medicine, in South Africa), on commission for clients.  If certain categories of people, like the albino community in Tanzania, are targeted, members of it may go in fear of their lives. If they cross an international border, they could be considered for refugee status. But this phenomenon, reported in South and East Africa so far, is distinct from accusations of witchcraft made against individuals.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo where reports on children being accused of being witches were first made, the word used for witchcraft is kindoki. This word may be used by Europeans and is often wrongly considered to be widely understood in Africa as well, where there are very many other local terms for forms of witchcraft. Victims of accusations are usually the weak and marginal to the community; they may be young or old, feeble in body or mind with little or no local support.  Both men and women, usually elderly, are at risk of accusation and over the past decade children have been increasingly found to be liable to be accused. These children are often living with relatives, or step parents, may be orphaned by war or AIDS; some are merely different in some way, being obstinate, unusually bright or unusually stupid. They may be accused by the pastors of churches, by neighbours or their own parents.  Physical abnormalities may put a child at risk of being killed and in some areas may endanger its mother in equal measure. In some places such as the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Delta region of Nigeria, accusations against children have reached epidemic proportions, although two states in the Delta have recently made such accusations illegal. Startling accounts of torture, starvation, abandonment and death involving children and adults have been documented. Accused witches have been executed by hanging, drowning and burning, with paraffin or petrol thrown at them to ignite the fire. Some may be forced to drink ‘medicine’ that has serious, even lethal, effects. In Ghana elderly women accused of witchcraft have been forced into camps where they barely survive.  Children have been turned from their homes to survive in the street as best they can; they are then at risk of further abuse or may be picked up by traffickers. Many have been killed, starved to death or died of their injuries.

Those accused of witchcraft may be thought to be possessed by demons and ‘cures’ may be sought through exorcism or deliverance as it is commonly known. Sometimes the pastors who have identified a person as a witch may perform the deliverance for a fee; at others, the accused are taken to pastors who specialise in such deliverance. One Nigerian pastor is known to have made DVDs that encourage people to seek out witch children and bring them for deliverance. The methods used in deliverance vary from church to church but may include violence and even murder. Children who survive may still be disowned by their parents.

Marginalised social groups may be attributed powers resembling witchcraft and this may attract accusations, although it may also give them some protection. This is the case of the Somali Yiber sub-clan (that claims to be one of the lost tribes of Israel) who have a quasi-untouchable status in Somali society, but are able to claim alms/charity from the majority The implications for refugee protection in this case are less clear. They may have a well-founded fear of persecution (the standard for refugee status) or perhaps they are just discriminated against, not because of their presumed witchcraft but because of their quasi-pariah status.

Children who have been trafficked or abused may also have been victims of witchcraft accusation but care should be taking in asking about what has been a highly traumatic experience. The events subsequent to such accusations may provide support for a claim to asylum or refugee status but trafficked children may not even know the name of their home village or local area. The victims of accusations of witchcraft have usually suffered serious violations of their human rights amounting to persecution which can form the basis for a claim for refugee status.  A return to their homeland is likely to result in further persecution, even death.  Expert witnesses can provide evidence of this.

UNHCR's Policy Development and Evaluation Service have created a 'Witchcraft, Displacement and Human Rights' blog to record and share materials including news items (which may not be reliable). These material may be of use to those who are defending persons who are claiming asylum on these grounds. Those wishing to contribute articles, news, and research to be posted on this blog should send materials to Maria Riiskjaer at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . The blog may be viewed at: http://maheba.wordpress.com. In addition, The Royal Anthropological Institute can give advice on finding anthropologists with expertise in the area: email admin[at]therai.org.uk and Inform, a charity that collects and distributes material on new religions, can provide reliable information on witchcraft in the diaspora: email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

The Fahamu Refugee Programme is well aware that this page does not address how to craft a claim for refugee status based on persecution experienced as a result of accusations of witchcraft. We are currently looking for lawyers with expertise in this area who might be willing to contribute to the page. If you are a lawyer with experience handling refugee claims based on accusations of witchcraft, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .