A Human Rights Failure in Nigeria
The Practice of Child Witch-Branding in Akwa Ibom State
Mar 2, 2009
Nigeria is not known for its stellar human rights record. In fact according to a report by the This Day, “UN Raises Rights Issues Against Govt” 21 February 2009, the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council requested that Nigeria tackle 32 human rights issues. One of the areas of human rights that has been particularly poor is that of children’s rights.
Child Abuse in Akwa Ibom State
Clifford Thomas, in his 9th December 2008 article that appeared in the Daily Independent, “Nigeria: Witchcraft And Child Abuse - Swell Times for Akwa Ibom Children”, considered the legislative steps that one Nigerian state has taken to deal with the issue of child abuse. In a very progressive move the “Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly passed the Child Rights Law, which "makes it an offence to abuse children in any form”. Thomas quoted a press release from the Speaker of the House of Assembly stating that the law can impose : "10 years imprisonment without an option of fine for any person, group of persons, corporate body or organisation of whatever description, who subjects a child to any form of torture, trial by ordeal or inhuman treatment in the process of purporting to cure, purge or exorcise a child of witchcraft".
The Practice of Child Witch-Branding
In Akwa Ibom, the depraved practice of accusing children of witchcraft is one that is longstanding . Jike Obeta of the Daily Trust in the 27th December 2008 article, “Nigeria: Tackling the Witchcraft Question in Akwa Ibom”, reported on the phenomenon. The practice recently received widespread media following a British Television Channel, ‘Channel 4’ documentary. According to Obeta, the piece “featured one Sunday Williams, a "Bishop," who claimed he had killed 110 children who were said to have witchcraft. Williams claimed that the state, with 3.9 million people, had 2.3 million witches and wizards.” Obeta further contends that although many analysts dismiss these claims, there are many in the community that believe in witchcraft.
Stephen Gbadamosi February 4th article in the Nigerian Tribune, “ Brand a child a witch/wizard in Akwa-Ibom, make N400,000”, described a typical scene: “a crowd gathers around an 11-year-old girl, with some elders wielding sticks, clubbing her and commanding, “Confess, you bewitched your father. If you don’t say the truth, you will die!” Then, a middle-aged man, perhaps the little girl’s uncle, clears his way to the centre of the crowd, with a rough stone and a three-inch nail in his hands. “If you won’t confess, then you will simply die,” he blurts out, standing the nail in the middle of the girl’s head and ramming it into her skull with the stone. The crowd erupts in triumphant jubilation.” Gbadamosi points out that despite the Childs Rights Bill being passed into law in Akwa Ibom, the practice continues. Non-governmental Organisations such as YHN-HEF project and the Child Right and Rehabilitation Network (CRARN) have been working tirelessly to expose the practice that leaves many witch-branded children homeless and traumatised.
Where to Next?
Nigeria is a deeply spiritual nation and the question of witchcraft is highly emotive. The only way to deal with this terrible crime against innocent children is for there to be high-level intervention. Religious and Political leadership from both the national and regional level need to come out strongly condemning the practice. Furthermore, civil society needs increased support in promoting children’s rights education.
