Saneh Institute, 3 MPs push for Bill to jail witch hunters
“I have also been a victim of Voodoo practice. If you look carefully at my face, you’ll see marks and these are Voodoo marks. They are marks from a shrine,”
3 Members of Parliament and the Saneh Institute are pushing for a bill to prohibit the practice of persons as witch doctors and witchfinders.
The bill which seeks to amend the Criminal and Other Offences Act 1960 (Act 29) will also proscribe the declaration, accusation, naming or labeling of another person as a witch; to prohibit a person from employing or soliciting anyone to accuse, name, label, indicate or declare another person as a witch.
Speaking on the Law on Joynews, Executive Director for the Sanneh Institute, Prof John Azumah noted that the bill is not about the belief but rather the process of declaring someone as a witch or wizard.
Furthermore, he was optimistic that the bill will protect innocent victims who are wrongfully declared witches by protecting their rights thus holding people accountable.
Additionally, Prof Azumah stated that they are not after the belief systems of people but the consequences of their actions.
“Witchcraft is mentioned in the Bible but you have to understand what that is all about. We are not after the belief system, we are going after the consequences and how people act out this belief. If I believe that witches exist, and I want to protect myself in my prayers, in my private house, that is my right,” he said.
Also on the show was the Member of Parliament of Madina, Francis Xavier Sosu, who is a proponent of the bill, who narrated the ordeal he had gone through as a result of the belief in voodoo.
He pointed to some face marks he has had as a result of the cruel experiences of the Trokosi system.
“I have also been a victim of Voodoo practice. If you look carefully at my face, you’ll see marks and these are Voodoo marks. They are marks from a shrine,” he said.
Furthermore, Mr. Sosu corroborated the earlier view noting that the Bill is meant to hold people accountable for their actions
The bill sponsors are MPs for Madina, Pusiga, and Wa East Constituencies, Francis-Xavier Kojo Sosu, Hajia Laadi Ayii Ayamba, and Dr. Godfred Seidu Jasaw respectively.
