Witchcraft in Post-colonial Africa: Beliefs, techniques and containment strategies

Chapter One: Witchcraft Discourse in Post-Colonial Africa

1 Chapter One Witchcraft Discourse in Post-Colonial Africa Introduction “No person with a background in Western science can admit the reality of witchcraft or the ‘breath of men’ as defined by the Nyakusa… The only solution is to kill the belief in witchcraft. As we have shown it is somewhat weakened by elementary education and Christian teaching, and we believe that its disappearance turns on increased technical control, particularly in the field of disease, on scientific education, and on the development of interpersonal relations.” Wilson (1967:135) It continues to confound social scientists, policy practitioners and decision-makers that humanity has progressed into the twenty first century without the belief in witchcraft diminishing. In Africa, the “belief in witchcraft is as prevalent as ever. Witchcraft forms part of the basic cultural, traditional and customary principle of Africans...” (Ralushai et.al., 1996:57). Indeed, the belief in witchcraft influences the daily lives of many Africans. It is “ingrained in popular mentality and informs and underscores social, political and cultural beliefs and practices” (Byrne, 2011:1). Even as Africa is increasingly urbanising and Africans are embracing modern day technological advancement, there is a prevailing common belief across the continent that there are people that have the ability to secretly use supernatural power in order to harm others or to help themselves at the expense of others. These are the witches; they are believed to cause unimaginable horror and destruction, they strike fear and cause a sense of helplessness in communities. In South Africa, “a large majority of the citizenry believes in witchcraft. The fear of the occult has not faded with apartheid but, surprisingly to many, has only intensified during the transition to 2 democracy. Witch killings rose dramatically in the early 1990s, and since then ethnographic accounts have described an occult epidemic affecting rural and urban areas throughout the country... Attacks on suspected witches continue today, and locals have reported a widespread sense of vulnerability to bewitchment in both city and country” (Tebbe, 2007:186). It is in this context – when both the majority of the citizenry and a large section of the ruling political elite are believers of witchcraft that postcolonial Africa has seen the resurgence of calls for state intervention in the occult domain. To those subjected to the wrath of this occult, witchcraft “is perceived to be unjust in much the same way as physical violence. And when citizens are subject to injustice at the hands of others, whether by physical or occult means, they call on government to punish, retaliate and deter. Many Africans feel that such a governmental imperative is particularly strong in a democracy because that form of government carries a special obligation to serve the people and to guarantee them the personal security necessary for the full exercise of political freedoms” (Tebbe, 2007:187). Immediately after independence in the early 1960s, the Cameroonian State experienced similar calls to address the threat of witchcraft differently. In response, the government enacted the provisions of Section 251 of the Penal Code of 1967 which stipulates that: “Whoever commits any act of witchcraft, magic or divination liable to disturb public order or tranquillity, or to harm another person, property or substance, whether by taking a reward or otherwise, shall be punished with imprisonment from two to ten years, and with a fine of five thousand to one hundred thousand francs.” In 1985, the Cameroonian government went further to commission a study to find out whether witchcraft was a hindrance to development. Thus, “in the case of witchcraft,” argues Fisiy (1998:151), “the legislature had sought to contain occult practices by making them a legal offence, a tactic that implicitly acknowledges their existence.” In 2006, Zimbabwe criminalised the practice of witchcraft. The Criminal Law Codification and Reform Act 23 of 2004 prohibits the 3 use of practices “commonly associated with witchcraft.” Witchcraft cases may now be dealt with in courts where experts or traditional healers may give evidence as proof that an accused indeed engaged in a witchcraft practice. In Malawi, there have been calls for government to repeal the Witchcraft Act of 1911 on the basis that it is foreign to Malawians’ cultural belief systems as it fails to recognise the existence of witchcraft. Citizen anxiety over witchcraft is widespread, and Malawians have therefore been calling on government to protect them against occult aggression. They are asking for witchcraft to be recognised as real and...