Over 445 children are in witch camps in the Northern Region
through no fault of theirs. They are the children and grandchildren of
alleged witches in the camps.
As part of a reintegration process, 199 inmates, out of the 880 alleged
witches in the six witch camps, have been successfully integrated back
into society.
This has reduced the number to 681 alleged witches, including 42
wizards and 445 children and grandchildren languishing in five witch
camps.
Come Monday, the Bonyase witch camp, which hosts three alleged witches, will be formally closed and the inmates reintegrated.
This leaves 678 alleged witches, most of whom are poor and vulnerable old women between the ages of 60 and 70 years.
The Kukuo Camp in the Nanumba South District has 137 alleged witches, with 172 of their children and grandchildren.
Out of these, over 66% of them are 70 years and above. Majority of the
residents come from Bimbilla and its surrounding communities, followed
by Napkali in the Zabzugu District.
The camp has no males.
Gnani-Tindang Camp in the Yendi District has a population of 273
alleged witches and wizards, consisting of 173 (80.4%) women and 42
(19.6%) men, and 231 children and grandchildren.
Unlike the Kukuo Camp, this camp has both sexes, and there is no
discrimination between them. Two ethnic groups can be distinguished;
namely, the Dagombas and the Kokombas.
Like the Kukuo Camp, majority (72%) of the population in the Gnani-Tindang camp are over 70 years old.
The Tindan-zhie Camp (Kpatinga) in the East Mamprusi District has 40
alleged witches and over 100 children and grandchildren. Like the
others, more than 70% of the population are 70 years or above.
Nabuli Camp in the Central Gonja District hosts 140 women. This camp
has no children living in it. In 2012, it was noted as being the newest
and fastest growing of the camps.
Similarly, Bonyase Camp in Gushegu has three alleged witches with no children.
The Gambaga Camp has 88 alleged witches, with majority of the population above 60 years.
Communications and Public Relations Co-ordinator, Mr Kwesi
Tawiah-Benjamin told The Finder that the conditions in the camps are
deplorable, where potable water and food remain unaffordable luxuries.
He said some of the inmates live in the camps with their children and
grandchildren, who help them in their daily chores and small-scale
farming.
He stated that some challenges have been encountered in the
reintegration process as community people find it difficult in accepting
the women; as a result, it would require increased sensitisation by the
private sector and development organisations to aid in the process.
According to ActionAid's 2012 report into the practice of witch camps
in Ghana, “accusations of witchcraft are a convenient excuse for the
cruel treatment of women who are poor, excluded, different, or seen to
be challenging the status quo.”
“While both men and women can, and have been accused of witchcraft,
women, and particularly elderly women, continue to be disproportionately
affected by the crime,” Mr Tawiah-Benjamin said.
He noted that the results of a monitoring visit to Ghana's six known
witch camps in 2012 by the Anti-Witchcraft Allegations Campaign
Coalition (AWACC-Ghana) revealed a disproportionate number of older
females residing in all of the camps.
He said the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, in
collaboration with ActionAid, Ghana and IBIS Ghana, is hosting a
conference to draw attention to some of the most vulnerable and
prosecuted individuals in our nation --- those persons who fall victim
to witchcraft accusations.
Under the theme ‘Protecting the Vulnerable: Witchcraft Accusations and
Human Rights Abuse in Ghana,’ it is anticipated that the conference will
draw national attention to the issue, providing greater understanding
of the problem and garnering public support and action in discontinuing
the practice.
The conference, which will take place today, December, 10, 2014, will
seek to approach the problem through a gendered lens in order to draw
attention to the ongoing human rights violations, and inequitable
gendered power relations which continue to fuel the practice.
It is important to recognise that witchcraft is a problem
disproportionately affecting women, particularly older females. Also at
high risk are women and children with disabilities and mental health
problems.
Witchcraft accusations occur where someone accuses another person of causing some form of harm by spiritual means.
Witchcraft is understood to be a supernatural power possessed by a person accused of being a witch or a wizard.Whilst there is some acceptance within Ghana that benevolent witchcraft
exists, witchcraft is generally understood as being an evil or
destructive force used to inflict harm against another. The form which
this harm may present itself may vary widely, with witches being accused
of causing anything from heath failures, natural disasters and material
or economic losses to social misfortune.
Witchcraft accusations remain deeply concerning, not because of the
belief in the supernatural, but because of the serious consequences
arising from witchcraft accusations, including serious abuse – physical,
economical and psychological, of the accused.
In Ghana, as in many other African nations, the belief in witchcraft is
deeply entrenched. Although no comprehensive study has been conducted
in Ghana to assess the extent to which Ghanaians believe in witchcraft,
Adinkrah and Adhikari (2014) claim the beliefs to be widespread, stating
that “in Ghana, it is estimated that over 90% of the population believe
in witches and witchcraft.”
