Group Calls For Decade of Activism Against Persecution of Witches In Africa

A group, Advocacy for Alleged Witches, has called for a decade of activism against witch persecution in Africa from 2020 to 2030.

According to the organisation, the main objective of the initiative is to create a witch hunting free Africa by sensitising Africans on the issue and spearheading the advocacy for alleged witches on the continent over the next 10 years.

To realise this objective, AfAW said it will share latest news on witchcraft allegation/witch persecution, engage state and non-state actors in the field of witchcraft accusation, intervene to protect alleged witches, and also educate accusers.

In a statement, initiator of the campaign, Leo Igwe, disclosed that the organisation will also lobby local, national and regional and global institutions in tackling abuses that are linked to witch persecution and witch hunting.

He said, “The organisation will also cooperate with institutions with similar aims and objectives, organise public education and enlightenment campaigns to reason people out of the misconceptions that drive witch persecution and other harmful traditional practices through trainings, workshops and seminars for various interest groups.

“AfAW’s campaign is founded on the principles that witchcraft is a myth and an imaginary crime which no one commits, attributions of causing harm through occult means are based on hearsay and misinformation, panic and anxieties, fear and superstition, witch persecution, killings and trials are forms of human rights abuses that should not be tolerated in the name of religion, culture or tradition.

“I urge all Africans including those in the Diaspora to join efforts with us to achieve this important objective.”