Falsely accused
Have you ever been falsely accused?
Depending on the circumstances, a false accusation can negatively affect a person’s life in significant ways. The person can be -
Looked down upon in society.
Treated as an outsider.
Excluded from social activities.
Be the subject of gossip.
Threatened or physically harmed.
This is the experience of some women but also men in Ghana who are accused of witchcraft.
According to Kwasi Atta Agyapong, author of Witchcraft in Ghana: Belief, Practice and Consequences,
A witch camp is a settlement where suspected witches can flee for safety to avoid being lynched or tormented.
A person can be accused of witchcraft for multiple reasons, including but not limited to the sudden sickness of a relative. These accusations are made against women the most and even children.
Most of the camps in Ghana are located in the Northern Region.
I visited the camp at Gambaga which is quite well known, and other camps are located at Bonyasi, Kpatinga, Kukuo, Naabuli, Gushegu and Gnani.1
We couldn’t just enter the Gambaga camp.
We first had to make contact with the person responsible for the community, Samson. Samson then facilitated the process for us to get permission from the chief of Gambaga to enter the camp.
We had to sit before the chief, with two elderly men sat to his right and left, and state the purpose for our visit. Samson spoke in the local dialect and once permission was granted we left the chief’s residence and entered the camp.
93 women and 4 men were staying in the Gambaga camp when I visited in January. There are also children staying there. The camp is under the protection of the chief.
Samson led us to visit various women who had been brought there after being accused of witchcraft. Many of the women were elderly, some in compromised health conditions due to injuries sustained at the hands of their accusers.
“She was beaten so much and they went and pushed her into the river. Because of that it has affected her eyes … she was accused of witchcraft, somebody was sick and they accused her [of being the cause]. She was banished.”
This was the story of one woman who we met as told to us by Samson.
Samson is the coordinator of the ‘Go Home’ Project that houses those women and men banished from their communities due to witchcraft accusations.
The Project was initially funded by the Presbyterian Church of Ghana and then another sponsor came along. But that sponsor has left Ghana and so the Gambaga camp currently has no funding.
The Project has successfully returned some women back to the communities from which they came, and has conducted education programs in communities.
Samson spoke about one community in particular who participated in an education program, after which it was possible for those accused to return. Samson says it is possible for education to be effective when done properly.
Samson spoke to us about the misunderstandings that arise when conditions that have a medical diagnoses are mistaken by communities to be the result of witchcraft - high fevers and epilepsy for example. This is why the education programs can make a difference.
Just recently, a bill has been passed by Ghana’s parliament that seeks to make it a criminal offence to label, name or accuse another person of being a witch.
This would hopefully see an end to the camps that although protect, effectively segregate women and men from their communities.
But changing the attitudes and beliefs of those responsible for making witchcraft accusations is not an overnight task and without these shifts, accused men and women remain in danger of being attacked if they return to their communities.
The subject of witchcraft is a complex one because it doesn’t just affect rural communities in Ghana. In the words of author Kwasi Atta Agyapong, it has “a direct bearing on Ghanaian society” at large. Witchcraft also has many cultural nuances that I won’t go into here but which are important to acknowledge.
The recent bill passed in Ghana’s parliament will not necessarily mean that the women, men and children living in camp communities are safe to return to their original homes in peace.
Also, the assent of the bill will not mean that witchcraft accusations will stop immediately and so this remains a live issue.
Kwasi Atta Agyapong, Witchcraft in Ghana: Belief, Practice and Consequences (Noam Publishers, 2021) pg. 19.
Keep in touch
Look out for this week’s weekly discussion thread if you are interested in discussing the complexities and cultural nuances of witchcraft further & follow the @adjoainghana Instagram for more content and Ghana adventures.
If you would like to swap notes, thoughts or experiences, you are welcome to get in touch.
Thank you for reading!
This week’s topic was a difficult one. If you have anything you would like to add, challenge or ask, you are invited to leave a comment.
If you are new to the adjoainghana newsletter, welcome! To find out more about the intention behind this community, check out our story here.
Medaase paa. Your presence is truly appreciated.
I’m so glad you’re drawing more attention to this. It’s definitely a topic that isn’t discussed nearly enough. It plagues African culture and seeks no kind of accountability for life just happening, it has to be attributed to ill wishes. I don’t doubt at all the realm of the unknown, and the historically proven use of witchcraft from many cultures. The issue is, the lines have become so blurred that its hard to decipher and distinguish.
Unfortunately, I’m not sure how seriously the bill will be taken, elders and many Ghanaians, Africans in general think this way, there’s much work to be done.