Martin Luther and the changeling

The Story of a Changeling at Dessau

Eight years ago [in the year 1532] at Dessau, I, Dr. Martin Luther, saw and touched a changeling. It was twelve years old, and from its eyes and the fact that it had all of its senses, one could have thought that it was a real child. It did nothing but eat; in fact, it ate enough for any four peasants or threshers. It ate, shit, and pissed, and whenever someone touched it, it cried. When bad things happened in the house, it laughed and was happy; but when things went well, it cried. It had these two virtues. I said to the Princes of Anhalt: "If I were the prince or the ruler here, I would throw this child into the water--into the Molda that flows by Dessau. I would dare commit homicidium on him!" But the Elector of Saxony, who was with me at Dessau, and the Princes of Anhalt did not want to follow my advice. Therefore, I said: "Then you should have all Christians repeat the Lord's Prayer in church that God may exorcise the devil." They did this daily at Dessau, and the changeling child died in the following year.... Such a changeling child is only a piece of flesh, a massa carnis, because it has no soul.

It seems likely that this Changeling was a child with autism.

Changelings from the Devil

Changelings and killcrops are laid in the place of legitimate children by Satan in order to plague mankind. He often pulls certain girls into the water, impregnates them, and keeps them with him until they deliver their children; afterward he places these children in cradles, taking the legitimate children away. But such changelings, it is said, do not live more than eighteen or nineteen years.

The Killcrop of Halberstadt

A man who lived near Halberstadt in Saxony had a killcrop who had sucked his mother and five additional wet nurses dry. Further, he was eating a great deal and behaving very strangely. The man was told that he should take the child on a pilgrimage to Hockelstadt to praise the Virgin Mary and to have him weighed there. The peasant followed this advice and set forth, carrying the child in a basket. But when he came to a bridge over some water, a devil in the water beneath the bridge called out: "Killcrop! Killcrop!" The child in the basket, who had never yet spoken a word, answered: "Ho! Ho!" This startled the peasant. The devil in the water then asked: "Where are you going?" The killcrop said: "I'm on my way to Hockelstadt to Our Dear Lady, to have myself weighed there so that I may grow." When the peasant heard the changeling speak, the first time this had ever happened, he became angry and threw the child into the water, basket and all. Then the two devils came together, shouted "Ho, ho, ha!," played with each other, rolled around with each other, and disappeared.

Satan plagues mankind with such changelings and killcrops by substituting them for real children. Satan has the power to exchange children, placing a devil in the cradle in the place of a child. This devil will suck and eat like an animal, but it will not grow. Thus it is said that changelings and killcrops do not live longer than eighteen or nineteen years.

It happens often, that babies are exchanged during their first six weeks, and that devils lay themselves in their place, making themselves detestable by shitting, eating, and crying more than any ten other children. The parents get no rest from such filthy beasts. The mothers are sucked dry and are no longer able to nurse.... However, changeling children should be baptized, because they cannot always be recognized as such during their first year.[1]

Pentecostal abuse of kindoki children is on the rise in the UK

Nigerian Pentecostal Church

When 15-year-old Kristy Bamu left his parents in Paris on 16 December 2010, he was looking forward to spending the Christmas holidays with his siblings, visiting their sister and her boyfriend in London.

On Christmas Day he was found by paramedics in the bathroom of an east London high-rise flat. His body had been mutilated, teeth were missing and he was covered in deep cuts and bruising. In the last four days of his life he had suffered acts of unspeakable savagery, doled out by a man he called "uncle" and one of his own sisters.

Why? Because Eric Bikubi, a powerfully built football coach, and Magalie Bamu were convinced the boy was a witch, possessed by spirits who wanted to bring evil into their home. On Thursday they were convicted of murder. They had earlier admitted actual bodily harm against Kristy's sister Kelly and a younger sister, who cannot be named.

The judge, Mr Justice Paget, exempted the jury from jury service for the rest of their lives because of the "strain" of the trial, adding it was a case "every one of us will remember". The story of Kristy's last days is difficult to hear, and harder to comprehend. He was starved and deprived of water and sleep, punched and kicked repeatedly, floor tiles were smashed over his head, his teeth were hit out with a hammer and a pair of pliers were used to twist his ear. Throughout the ordeal, his siblings – two of whom were themselves accused of being witches by the couple and abused – were forced to watch or take part in the torture.

But despite the extraordinary horror of this case, African groups have warned that belief in witchcraft is increasingly common in some communities and that other children in the UK are "suffering in silence" after being branded as witches.

"We were concerned about this before this trial of Kristy Bamu," said Debbie Ariyo, executive director of Africans Unite Against Child Abuse(Afruca), who added that a boom in pentecostal churches was leading to more children being accused of witchcraft. "This is not a problem with all pastors or all churches, but the branding of children as witches is not abating. It is a growing problem. There are so many children suffering in silence."

In response to the case the Victoria Climbie Foundation announced on Thursday that in April it would be launching a cross-border initiative with Kelly Bamu and some of the teenager's friends who would work in schools and in communities to highlight the dangers of ritualised child abuse and witch branding. "A lot of awareness raising has been done, but this is also a problem in other EU countries such as Belgium," said director Mor Dioum.

The 83 incidents uncovered in the past decade only scratch the surface of a hidden crime, according to Detective Superintendent Terry Sharpe, head of the child abuse investigation command at Scotland Yard.

An average of eight children a year in Greater London are victims of abuse based on witchcraft-style exorcisms, but this only reflects cases resulting in police investigations.

Sharpe detailed the horrific abuse, including being beaten or forced to drink unknown liquids, starved or deprived of sleep, blindfolded and having their hair shaved off.

Kristy Bamu was subjected to many methods of torture. It began with a simple accident when Kristy, waking in an unfamiliar bed, wet himself. Bikubi, finding the underwear, accused the boy of being possessed bykindoki – the word for witchcraft in the Congolese Lingala language. This is a recognisable trigger in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where both Bikubi and Bamu were born, according to Dr Richard Hoskins, an expert in African religions.

"The trigger that needs to occur for people to think someone is possessed by kindoki can be anything out of the ordinary. Bed-wetting is a classic example of this," he told the Old Bailey trial.

For the next four days, Kristy and two of his sisters – Kelly, 21, and an 11-year-old – were accused repeatedly of being witches. They were forced to fast and stay up all night chanting prayers. In horrific evidence, which reduced members of the jury to tears, the court heard that Bikubi soon fixated on Kristy. Over several days, he beat him around the body with a metal bar used for weights, shoving the end of it into his mouth and dislodging a tooth. The football coach headbutted and hit the teenager, smashing bottles and then heavy floor tiles – bought to redecorate the flat – over his head. When paramedics arrived at the flat on Christmas Day and found the child drowned by the side of a bath, they found his blood all over the flat and an "armoury" of weapons that had been used to torture him.

Witchcraft had preoccupied Bikubi from an early age. Speaking to a forensic psychiatrist, Dr Tim Rogers, in Pentonville prison, he explained as a child in the DRC he saw rats and other "abnormal visions" and was isolated as a result. Bikubi – who moved to London when he was seven – believed he was "the chosen one", with a special ability to sense other people's spirits.

Thomas Bikebi, executive director of the Congolese Family Centre, said that for some believers once the presence of evil spirits had been "confirmed" – often, but not always by a pastor – the "punishment" was seen to be imposed on the spirit and not on the child. "When you force the child to fast, people believe you are starving the spirit, not the child. When you beat, you are beating the spirit," he said.

The widespread belief in kindoki could even lead those who believed in the evil power of spirits to support the actions of Bikubi and Bamu, he said. "There are people within the community who will say that this pair did the right thing, they killed a witch," Bikebi said.

Common problems experienced by children – such as autism, epilepsy, dyslexia or even simple naughtiness – could trigger accusations, said Ariyo, with children living away from home or in domestic servitude most likely to be targeted.

"It is heartbreaking. Some of these children have a disability but pastors are saying they are possessed," she said. "This can prevent parents going to see professionals and getting the help they need."

There has been a rapid growth in African churches in the UK. According to UK Church Statistics, 670 pentecostal churches opened between 2005 and 2010, taking the total to 3,900 – that figure is expected to rise to 4,600 by 2015. As a result, Ariyo fears that "witch-branding" is on the increase. Afruca dealt with a dozen cases of ritualised abuse last year, and said the national figure was likely to be far higher.

A social worker with more than 30 years' experience with African communities in London said that many cases were "going under the radar" and blamed "rogue" pastors for the spread of branding and ritualised abuse. "It is spreading like bushfire because it is a source of income," she said. "If you can charge £500 for an oil that is going to 'cure' a child of evil spirits, you are going to make money. Pastors can be very powerful people, and we have to educate the bad ones that there are other ways of making money than playing on people's ignorance."

Police believe Bikubi may have visited Nigerian preachers in north London but his local churches denied knowing him. However, access to the internet and satellite channels meant the influence of pastors based in countries such as Nigeria, Angola and the DRC was increasingly pervasive, Bikebi said.

"You have pastors online who tell people that they just need to send money and touch the table in front of them and the evil spirit will be banished and all their problems will be fixed."

One video on YouTube, featuring the well-known Nigerian preacher David Oyedepo, reveals the power of some church leaders. A teenage girl kneels before the pastor, and after saying she is a "witch for Jesus" he calls her a "foul devil", slapping her violently across the face while the congregation cheers. In a later video, he can be seen boasting: "I slapped a witch here last year."

Many African churches work with agencies to educate preachers about UK laws concerning child protection, according to the Churches' Child Protection Advisory Service. The organisation has trained 4,000 preachers from African churches since 2007, but argues that local boards for safeguarding children must do more to know what churches are operating in their areas.

A lack of any requirement to note religion in child abuse cases was likely to lead to under-reporting, said its chief executive, Simon Bass.

"Like female genital mutilation, there is likely to be under-reporting in this area, so we have to work with statutory agencies and across the church spectrum to ensure more children do not suffer this type of abuse," he said.

Project Violet, the Metropolitan police's faith-related child abuse unit, has a team of three dedicated officers working with communities, schools, religious leaders, and the medical profession to raise awareness, said Sharpe. "We have ongoing community engagement … and are in the process of increasing awareness of Project Violet within the Met police so that frontline officers who attend incidents are aware of these particular issues," he said.

Critics argue the unit has been seriously neglected in recent years, after making an initial impact when it was established in 2005 as a response to the abuse of child B – an eight-year-old Angolan girl who was beaten, cut and had chilli rubbed in her eyes for being a "witch".

"Project Violet is a shadow of its former self," said Ariyo. "The police are not engaging enough with faith groups, and there is a gap that needs to be filled. We shouldn't shed tears after another child has been killed. We need to act now."

Afruca is calling on the government to make branding a child as a witch illegal, and is calling for greater monitoring of churches and preachers. "If we don't push home the idea that calling a child a witch will have grave consequences, then we will continue to have these kind of cases," said Ariyo. "We don't seem to be learning from these cases. People cry crocodile tears and then nothing happens."

On Christmas Day 2010, Kristy's killer spoke to the boy's father, Pierre, accusing the 15-year-old of being a witch and threatening to kill him. Kristy told his father: "Dad, come and get me, or otherwise Eric will kill me". The court heard Pierre Bamu, dismissed the boy's fears because he could not imagine Bikubi causing any harm to the children, who had stayed with Bikubi before. A few hours later, Kristy was dead. [1]

CBN: Biblical Response to Child Witches

Can a child be a witch? How about a demon possessed kid? A recent New York Times article reports a growing phenomenon in Angola, Congo and the Congo Republic. Parents and families call a child a witch and kick them out on the street. They beat these children and worse.

Sharon LaFraniere's article is a startling and compelling read. She goes on to explain that it's not truly a matter of the children being witches or being demon possessed. It is more a case of families being unable to care for their children. It seems calling your kid a witch is the surest way to "divorce" yourself from your child; some go so far as to beat their children. The families cannot pay for the children, so they get rid of them. Witchcraft seems to be only an excuse. This is so heartbreaking.

The article continues on to say that there are not enough places to care for these children. I am telling you, you've got to read this article!

Here's where true believers in Jesus Christ need to step in. God's best is for His people to take care of widow's and orphans. I cannot say for sure, but my guess is that if there was a big humanitarian push to bring aid to these regions of Africa, this strange practice would be nearly obliterated.

Couple the aid with the teachings of Jesus. All are precious in His sight. Children are a blessing. That God loves us as a good, all-caring Father. There is hope for the future.

The Bible does talk about children being possessed by demons, but in every instance, Jesus casts out the demons with a word. He heals them and sends them home. There are several of these cases...

Mark seven recounts how Jesus heals a little girl from demon possession. All it took was the mother's faith in Him and a word from the Master.

In Luke nine, a boy was possessed by a demon. As Jesus came nearer, the demon "threw him to the ground in a convulsion." Jesus rebuked the evil spirit, healed the boy and gave him back to his father.

In Matthew 17, a boy was being thrown in fire and water - literally being destroyed by the demonic spirit. But Jesus healed him.

In the case of these children in these various countries in Africa, I hope and pray there would be those who would reach out to these families in Christian love. And help meet their physical, mental and spiritual needs. This practice of abusing children in the name of "religion" must end. [1]

My take on Helen Ukpabio

Warning! Below is my opinion.  I do not make a habit of typing things on this blog that I do not source.

I cannot stress enough that Christianity is a big religion.  Africa is a big continent.  Nigeria is a big place.  I am not trying to make any blanket statements. While I see similarities between Congolese witchcraft and the witchcraft in the Nigerian delta, I do not know enough to connect the two.  Like all religion, we cannot look at child witches myopically.

I don't think that anyone is saying that Lady Apostle Helen Ukpabio is a witch killer.  As far as I know, she has never directly harmed a child.  As far as I know, she does not charge for delivering children from witchcraft.  What is being alleged is much more broad.  Ukpabio presides over more than a hundred churches.  She produced several movies about child witches.  While she maintains that these movies are just as fictional as Harry Potter, I disagree. In the western world, witches and wizards are largely fictional characters.  J.K. Rowling does not believe in witchcraft.  In her book, she goes to great lengths to make her magic so fanciful that it cannot be replicated.  Can you find me an unicorn hair or a phoenix feather for your wand?  Unlike Rowling, Ukpabio believes in witchcraft.  She wrote a non-fiction work on how to identify child witches.  The comparison is not with Harry Potter, but with the Left Behind series.  In the Left Behind series, the authors write fiction that they believe to be representative of the facts.  Ukpabio says the movies are fiction, but she teaches the spiritual facts behind the fiction.

Because of her bloody movies about child witches and her broad ministry proclaiming child witches, she is being blamed for the majority of the child witch crisis. The fact of the matter is that child witches do not exist. She claims that these witches are harming people, but it is the make believe that harms people. She could be teaching them about modern medicine. She could be teaching people they should not be superstitiously scared of their own children. Instead she teaches that their child has the power to magically kill them. There is no reason that children should be taught that they are witches. This superstitious teaching is being used by people as an excuse to kill children.

Far from solving the problem, she travels the world blaming the problem on an atheist conspiracy.  Rightly she divines that her biggest opponents do not only not believe in mermaids and witchcraft. They deny the existence of God Himself.  As evangelical Christians this should outrage us, but not for the reasons that she suggests.  An area of the world that boasts allegedly the largest amount of churches proportional to the population is harming thousands of children.  Why should the atheists be front and center dealing with this problem?

Martin Robbins: The dangerous fight for the 'child witches' of Nigeria

"Unlike other ministries where witches and wizards are beaten or stoned to death, Liberty is the only Ministry that shows mercy to witches." So boast the Liberty Foundation Gospel Ministries, whose leader, Helen Ukpabio, is claimed to be one of Nigeria's leading 'deliverers' of witches - ministering to up to a thousand at a time.

Humanist campaigner Leo Igwe and other rational-minded people in West Africa take a rather dim view of branding children 'witches', and claim that in many cases deliverance is far from the serene and gentle experience it is claimed to be. According to Igwe and charities working in the region, children "are taken to churches where they are subjected to inhumane and degrading torture in the name of 'exorcism'. They are chained, starved, hacked with machetes, lynched or murdered in cold blood." Some are apparently bathed in acid.

Criticizing these churches is not a great idea if you value a hassle-free life. In 2009 around 200 of Ukpabio's Liberty followers stormed a meeting of humanists as Igwe prepared to speak, bringing the event to an abrupt and violent end. Fortunately the police were called and intervened, but Liberty immediately sued for $1.3m dollars, apparently incensed that a meeting critical of their activities was allowed by the authorities to go ahead. The case was swiftly dismissed by Justice P.J. Nneke at the Federal High Court in Calabar.

Unfortunately the authorities aren't always on the right side. Religious groups and powerful individuals can wield significant power and influence, especially in local communities, and even senior police officers and lawmakers may share their belief in witchcraft.

Regional leader Governor Akpabio recently caused alarm when - in spite of apparently taking steps to tackle the child witch issue - he abruptlyordered the arrest of officials working for NGOs like Stepping Stones Nigeria who are fighting child abuse in the region.

This was supposedly due to allegations of fraud, but NGOs have been successful in bringing the problem of child abuse to the attention of international media like CNN, and the Governor reacted badly to these reports, declaring them to be "part of the media propaganda against the state" and insisting that he had already resolved the problem. The suspicion of many campaigners is that those bringing attention to the problem may be seen as an inconvenience, an embarrassment, and a challenge to his authority.

No evidence of any fraud has been put forward, but Liberty's websitecontains an example of the sorts of smears and allegations that have been circulating against NGOs in Nigeria:

"Be informed that some organizations that don't believe in the existence of God called "HUMANIST" have formed organisations in the name of helping the Helpless Child of Africa from being molested. Stepping stone Nigeria is one of such Organisations, it has been investigated by the Nigerian Police and discovered that "Stepping stone Nigeria" is not REGISTERED anywhere in the world. It is used as an Internet SCAM to extort money from the people who are in sympathy with clips of tortured children by some wicked parents not necessaryingly on account of witchcraft. As at June ending Stepping stone Nigeria has made from the public fraudulently the sum of about One Million, Two Hundred Thousand Pounds sterling (£1.2M)"

The allegations are of course nonsense: in reality Stepping Stones are registered with the Charity Commission in the UK, and detailed accounts are filed there and posted on their own website.

Leo Igwe was due to give evidence to the Akwa-Ibom State Commission of Inquiry into Witchcraft Accusations and Child Rights Abuses today, but found himself arrested and allegedly beaten before being released without charge. He described his ordeal to Sahara Reporters:

"It was a terrible encounter and it was premeditated going by the way they executed the plot to hold me accountable for "kidnapping;" my hands were tied behind me and they beat me mercilessly. [...] My head was swollen and I kept massaging it so that it does not become permanent; from Tuesday night to this morning I was kept incommunicado and had no contact with either my family or my lawyers."

The arrest comes straight after a series of similar incidents: Leo and his father were arrested on the 5th January, and his brother was taken into custody by the state security service a few days later. Regular arrests have become a feature of life for Leo and his family for some years, and campaigners regard them as a pattern of harassment related to his campaigning, and his pursuit of a powerful man living locally who is alleged to have raped a young girl.

Leo Igwe will continue to fight for the children of Nigeria, while theInternational Humanist and Ethical Union are putting pressure on regional authorities to try and bring an end to the arrests. Stepping Stones Nigeria have continue their work in the country in spite of the threat of arrest. All three deserve a lot of support.[1]

Hipster Ariel Weighs in on Child Witches

Lady Apostle Helen Ukpabio is coming to Houston

The genesis of these blogs about Nigerian Lady Apostle Helen Ukpabio has to do with her conference that she is holding in Houston, Texas from March 14th - 25th.[1][2]  She is a noted exorcist of child witches. Earlier she attempted to use Nigerian law to ban all criticism of her.

In the lawsuit, Ms. Ukpabio alleges that the state law infringes on her freedom of religion. She seeks 2 billion naira (about $13 million) in damages, as well as “an order of perpetual injunction restraining the respondents” from interfering with or otherwise denouncing her church’s “right to practice their religion and the Christian religious belief in the existence of God, Jesus Christ, Satan, sin, witchcraft, heaven and hellfire.”

In other words, in the name of religious freedom, Ms. Ukpabio seeks a gag order on anyone who disagrees with her. [3]

She has made a number of claims and I will survey them over the next few days.  

Mermaid Spirits - Part of Your World?

From Nigerian Pentecostal preacher Helen Ukpabio, self proclaimed consecrated Christendom’s first “lady apostle, website:

MARINE SPIRITS DELIVERANCE:
Many people of the world are connected to demonic principality called leviathan. This evil spirit possesses humans through family deities, water spirit and thro cliques formed with witches.
In Nigeria, they call this type of possession –mermaid or mammy water spirit. Actually leviathan does not only operate through the rivers, seas, spirit stream or ocean, but also operate through stones, rocks, thick forest, clay, mud, leaves, roots, and any medium of choice. The spirit of husband and wife delights to pollute the system of their victims’ through sexual intercourse in their dreams.
They caused hardship, failures, disappointments, sicknesses, hard luck, and failures to their victim, childlessness and constant infant deaths are their characteristics.
Evang (Mrs.) Helen Ukpabio is gifted in casting out demons generally including mermaids. The film that teaches on marine spirit is called “Highway to the Grave”. [1]

Dispatches: Return to Africa's Witch Children

Helen Ukpabio - Her side of the story

In the video clip below children are possessed. One with the spirit of stubbornness,"lack of interest in school", bad company, and "power of destruction".  A man goes blind and a woman miscarries a child.  Critics of Lady Apostle Helen Ukpabio have accused her of using her 1999 movie, End of the Wicked, to scare parents into getting their child exorcised.



What does Ukpabio say today about all this?  In 2010 the New York Times asked her.

Their fellow villagers have often seen DVDs of “End of the Wicked,” Ms. Ukpabio’s bloody 1999 movie purporting to show how the devil captures children’s souls. And some have read her book “Unveiling the Mysteries of Witchcraft,” where she confidently writes that “if a child under the age of 2 screams in the night, cries and is always feverish with deteriorating health, he or she is a servant of Satan.”...

...“Do you think Harry Potter is real?” Ms. Ukpabio asked me angrily, in the lobby of the Holiday Inn Express where she was staying. “It is only because I am African,” she said, that people who understand that J. K. Rowling writes fiction would take literally Ms. Ukpabio’s filmic depictions of possessed children, gathering by moonlight to devour human flesh.[1]

Her defense is that End of the Wicked is fiction.  There are also those in her church that put together the following testimonial about three deliverances from their witchcraft.  (In parts of west Africa, witchcraft is a spirit that comes upon you.  One can be a witch, but not know it.  This spirit then uses its host to do evil natural and supernatural things.)

Supposedly Ukpabio does not maim or charge for her services.  According to her, where do these accusations come from?

Be informed that some organizations that don't believe in the existence of God called "HUMANIST" have formed organisations in the name of helping the Helpless Child of Africa from being molested. STEPPING STONE NIGERIA is one of such Organisations, it has been investigated by the Nigerian Police and discovered that"STEPPING STONE NIGERIA" is not REGISTERED anywhere in the world. It is used as an Internet SCAM to extort money from the people who are in sympathy with clips of tortured children by some wicked parents not necessaryingly on account of witchcraft. As at June ending STEPPING STONE NIGERIA has made from the public fraudulently the sum of about One Million, Two Hundred Thousand Pounds sterling (£1.2M)

Be informed that this amount of money is not even Taxed by any government of any country because of the lies that STEPPING STONE NIGERIA has been registered. Very recently security agents of Nigeria have declared Gary Foxcroft the head of the STEPPING STONE NIGERIA and Itauma of CRARN WANTED on account of Fraud, Piracy, forgeries, and threat to life of Lady Apostle Helen Ukpabio.

It is also discovered that Gary Foxcroft is a frontline member ofHUMANIST MOVEMENT who don't believe in the existence of God and of Devil.

They hide behind this movement to solicit for funds from the public using innocent children who are never witches to campaign in order to weep sentiment and sympathy. We all know that when there is anything about children abandonment, stigmatisation, torture and death the whole world will respond because the child is Helpless. This is where Gary Foxcroft and Itauma has won the heart of many. the truth is Humanism simply means ATHEISM. This group says there is no God in Heaven and Helen Ukpabio says there is God in existence and that very POWERFUL. This is the God Helen that Helen is worshipping who has called and empowered her. This group is sponsored by Godswill Akpabio, Akwa Ibom State Governor. The whole world is sponsoring Gary Foxcroft and Itauma to spread their belief "Humanism" [2]

OK, to sum up she is being defamed by those cheating, lying, stealing atheists.  

A 2005 London Incident of Kindoki

Abuser speaks of witch belief

Sita Kisanga was one of three people convicted at the Old Bailey on Friday on child cruelty charges, after an eight-year-old African girl accused of being a witch was tortured in East London.

The case has raised fears that many more children could also be suffering beatings or may even have been killed if accused of witchcraft.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Kisanga said she tried to prevent the abuse, but insisted the girl contained an evil spirit, know as kindoki.

We were living really good. Then it came to one occasion I heard that the child was crying. I thought she was alone in the room and then I saw her auntie beating her with a belt.

I was really surprised and I said 'what is the problem?' and she said to me 'Sita, this child is talking about serious things, things relating to witchcraft'.

She started to explain that the girl goes to Africa in the night-time to do bad things.

I know that it is not easy for people to believe, but those people with a spiritual belief, they will know that what I am saying is true. There is the spiritual world and the material world.

She [the aunt] was beating her like that because she believes in witchcraft, kindoki. She really deeply believed it.

'Kindoki'

The pastor confirmed that she had kindoki. The only advice that he gave us was that she had to attend the church and she had to go through prayer and deliverance.

He is the leader of the church. He saw that the girl had kindoki, that's why he confirmed that the child had kindoki.

I told her to stop beating her. I told her in this country, beating a child is no good.


But she carried on beating the child when I was away at college.

I never did such things to her. It was her auntie who poisoned the child against me.

The auntie was telling the girl to mention my name, but I didn't do it. I would never be able to do things to someone's child.

She is her auntie, her step-mother who raised her. She was protecting her step-mother.

I'm not guilty. I said it to the police. I said everything to them, they don't believe me.

Trust

I didn't trust anyone [to come forward at the time] because no-one would believe me. Look at the problems I've got now. I've explained to them, but they don't believe me.

In our community, kindoki happens. It is killing people. It is doing bad things. It is a serious matter.

In our community in the UK everyone believes in it. In our country they believe in it too.

It is not easy for you to accept these things because you are from a different culture.

Kindoki is something you have to be scared of because in our culture kindoki can kill you and destroy your life completely.

Kindoki can make you barren. Sometimes kindoki can ruin you chances of staying in this country.

The authorities will arrest you and deport you and kindoki can be part of it.

I feel sorry for what's happened to the child. I'm not really feeling sorry for her though. She's not feeling sorry for me. 

Kisanga said she did not think the pastor who saw the girl knew she was being beaten.[1]

...The trial was told by Dr Richard Hoskins, an expert in African studies, that belief in witchcraft - known as ndoki in the Lingala language - was not uncommon among some African communities.

He said: "Spirit possession is also a common feature of African traditional religion and there is a belief that they can fly or mutate into other creatures."

Ms May said: "It's not unusual for the defendant to believe that (the girl) could shift her shape and visit people at night."

But Dr Hoskins stressed witchcraft believers would never condone physically harming a child, even one they thought was possessed by an evil spirit.

Ms X claimed to the child came from Cabinda

Ms X, Kisanga and Pinto worshipped at Protestant churches in Dalston and Neasden which catered for people from Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Kisanga clearly believed in evil and there were entries, in her handwriting, about "satanic" tendencies in a diary found in her flat.

In another entry she describes a dream in which she met the 'Holy Spirit' and also refers to a female child in London with a snake in her abdomen.

It appears Kisanga persuaded herself, and Ms X, the child was possessed by an evil spirit and they meted out horrific treatment to her as a result.

Real or not, the belief resulted in simple, unforgivable child abuse.[2]

Further Reading on this 2005 case

'Exorcisms are part of our culture' In this article a pastor explains that ndoki (kindoki) does exist, but he stresses that exorcisms are supposed to be non-violent.  "But disciples should only do what the master did, I never read in the bible about Jesus Christ being violent with anybody to cast out any spirit."

Antoine Lokongo, the editor of a Congolese newsletter, Congo Panorama, believes the growing violence in exorcisms is due to western influence. 

Exorcisms in themselves were not a bad thing and part of Congolese culture and identity, he said. 

"This is part of our identity, part of our culture but it's being exploited for economic reasons."
He said some of the churches and charities set up by Congolese people in the UK were simply "money-making schemes". 

Child exorcisms were becoming widespread with the growing population seeking refuge in the UK from war zones in Angola and Congo, he added.

Woman cleared over 'witch' trial

Girl was to be 'thrown in river' 

Abuse case sparks new fears  
A West African / FundamentalistChristian syncretistic religion in the UK

Family tortured for witchcraft (kindoki)

Apparently "kindoki" is less violent under the supervision of a church.  Well, that is comforting. At least Congolese children are not permitted to be interrogated for witchcraft under the Congolese tradition. 

A teenage boy underwent "unimaginable physical torture" before being drowned by his sister and her partner because they believed he was a sorcerer who was practising witchcraft, a court heard on Thursday.

Eric Bikubi and Magalie Bamu, both 28, killed 15-year-old Kristy Bamu in their east London flat after violently abusing him for several days, and repeatedly attacked the victim's two sisters, whom they accused of sorcery, the Old Bailey heard on the opening day of the trial.

Over four days Kristy, who was visiting his sister from France, was tortured with metal bars, wooden sticks, a hammer and a pair of pliers in a "prolonged attack of unspeakable savagery and brutality", the court was told.

After being denied sleep and food and having being repeatedly attacked, Kristy admitted to being a sorcerer in the hope that the violence would stop. He finally begged to be allowed to die.

On Christmas Day 2010 the defendants, who both deny murder, allegedly forced the boy and his siblings into a bath, submerging him in water. Pathologist reports revealed he suffered 101 injuries, and died as a result of drowning and the injuries.

When Kristy was found by paramedics in the eighth-floor flat in Forest Gate, his head, face, back and arms were covered in deep cuts and bruises, and several of his teeth were missing.

Kristy and four siblings were sent by their parents, from their home in Paris, to see their sister and his partner on 16 December. A few days passed "pleasantly enough", then Bikubi said some of the children were possessed by spirits and were having an evil influence on a younger child in the house, it is claimed.

"Despite her own siblings' denials that they were involved in witchcraft, Magalie Bamu joined her boyfriend in repeating these fantastic claims and participating in the assaults," said Brian Altman QC, prosecuting.

The court was told that over a period of days the pair, originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo, attempted to exorcise evil spirits they believed were in three of the children – Kristy, his sister Kelly, 20, and their 11-year-old sister, who cannot be named. Bikubi refused "to let them eat, drink or sleep for days, while the punishments became increasingly violent, with [the attackers] using the many implements found in the flat as weapons of torture", Altman said.

During their ordeal the siblings were forced to pray and chant throughout several nights and, in a "staggering act of depravity and cruelty", the defendants recruited sibling against sibling as "vehicles for their violence", said Altman.

Kristy became the focus of Bikubi's attention, the court heard. He allegedly struck the boy with a hammer in the face, knocking out his teeth; on another occasion he shoved a metal bar into the teenager's mouth, the court heard.

When Kelly attempted to hit her brother using something light, she was ordered to use a heavier implement. In a desperate attempt to prevent any further suffering, Kristy and his two sisters eventually admitted to being sorcerers, said Altman. "As Kristy's injuries became ever more severe he even pleaded to be allowed to die," he added.

When paramedics got to the flat just after midday on Christmas Day 2010, there was blood across walls, furniture, ceiling and floor.

Police found Kristy's brothers, Yves, 22, and a 13-year-old, and Kelly and her 11-year-old sister in the living room. "All were standing in the living room, hysterical, terrified and soaking wet. None spoke any English. both girls appeared to be injured."

A French-speaking paramedic asked Kelly to explain what had happened. "What she told him was a tale of horror," he said. She indicated an "armoury of weapons", saying Bikubi had hit her over the head with a metal bar and a piece of wood and pointed to a hammer she said he used to hit Kristy in the mouth. At one stage Bikubi smashed ceramic floor tiles over Kristy's head and jabbed him with a knife, she told the paramedic.

The jury heard an account of the last moments of Kristy's life. "Eventually, Bikubi took him into the bathroom, put him in the bath and started to run the water. Kirsty was just too badly injured and exhausted to resist or to keep his head above the water," said Altman. "While Kristy succumbed to death, Bikubi put Yves, Kelly and the two other children into the bath with their brother and hosed them all down with cold water using a shower head."

Bamu called 999 saying her brother had drowned himself in the bath. Paramedics found Kristy's body on the bathroom floor, where Bikubi had tried to revive him.

The court heard that a series of calls were made to the children's parents in Paris during their four-day ordeal. One call on Christmas Eve lasted two and a half hours and between midnight and 7am on Christmas Day, 45 calls were made to Kristy's parents.

The court heard that in the early morning Bikubi told Kristy's father, Pierre Bamu, that he would kill his son if he was not collected. Told to speak to his father, Kristy reiterated the plea, saying: "Uncle Eric will kill me."

Pierre dismissed fears about the children because he could not imagine Bikunbi doing any harm to them, the court heard. But after the threat the couple tried, and failed, to get to London on Christmas Day. At about 8pm Pierre had a call from Kelly. "She told him, 'Dad, we are at the hospital, Kristy is dead', " said Altman.

The court heard that following neighbours' complaints of flooding, the council sent a plumber, who entered the flat 20 minutes before the emergency services were called. He saw "nothing untoward", thought nothing of splashing from the bathroom and left shortly after, the court heard.

The jury was told the belief in kindoki – the Lingala word for sorcery – was pervasive in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Expert witnesses in the trial would make clear there was "no provision in Congolese life and culture for the maltreatment and abuse of children", Altman said. "However, if the practice of kindoki is dislocated from the control of churches in the Congo, and the supervisory influence of religious leaders, then it may take on a feral and, indeed, evil character, as we suggest it did here."

Bikubi denies murder, but admitted manslaughter on grounds of diminished responsibility, and pleaded guilty to two counts of actual bodily harm. Magalie Bamu denies murder and two counts of actual bodily harm. The trial continues.[1]

Humanists and Nigerian Witches

One of the interesting things about the Nigerian witch hunters is that they have been combated by a group of humanists.  These humanists do not believe in the gospel, but they also do not believe in witchcraft.  They are in an unique position to persuade parents that their children are not witches.  However they have been persecuted for their attempts.

Nigerian Humanists have won the latest round in an ongoing battle with witch hunters. Today, 4 Feb. 2010, the Federal High Court in Calabar struck out the case brought against Leo Igwe, International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) Representative in West Africa, by Helen Ukpabio of the Liberty Gospel Church. 

In November last year, Ukpabio went to court claiming that conferences organised by the Nigerian Humanist Movement to tackle witchcraft related abuses infringed on her right to spread the gospel. She asked the court to order the child rights campaigners to pay her two hundred billion naira (1.3 billion US dollars) as damages for “infringement of their rights.” 

“The Church instituted this court action to stop their arrest and prosecution for the attack of July 29 in Calabar,” said Igwe, referring to a physical assault on him last year. About 200 members of the Liberty Gospel Church disrupted an anti-witch hunt conference that Igwe organized in July 2009. (Video of the attack is available here: http://www.iheu.org/iheu-representative-attacked.) The conference highlighted the role of Liberty Gospel Church in ‘trials’ of children suspected of being witches. Many children have been killed after having been found guilty by such ‘trials.’ IHEU has raised the issue of witch hunts in many international forums, including the United Nations Human Rights Council and the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights. 

Ukpabio and her lawyers were not in court. So the lawyer leading the defence team, Barrister Madaki, asked the court to strike out the case due lack of diligent prosecution. And the court granted his request. 

“The striking out of this case is a welcome development,” said Igwe. “It is a victory for justice, human rights and the rule of law in Nigeria. The Nigerian Humanist Movement and its partner groups will continue to work and campaign to eradicate all forms of human rights abuses in the name of witchcraft.”[1]

More on the Nigerian Humanist Movement:

The Nigerian Humanist Movement was founded in 1996 to promote Humanism, defend secularism and provide a sense of community to all non-religious and freethinking Nigerians - atheists, skeptics, rationalists, agnostics and freethinkers. Nigeria is a deeply religious society. And in most cases people relate, interact and marry along religious lines. Religious affiliation becomes a decisive factor when one is seeking employment, doing a business or wants to be admitted into a school or university. Those who do not profess any religion are treated as second class citizens. So in Nigeria most non-religious people are in the closet. They lack any association or community they can call their own. The rights of non-religious people are not recognized. The voice and interests are not represented at public debates and discourse. So NHM was formed to fulfill this important need- to defend the rights and interests of Humanists and the general public and to realize a Humanistic society....  

Since its inception NHM has taken part in several campaigns against anti-personnel landmines, child labor, female genital mutilation, ritual killing, witchcraft, caste discrimination, shari’a law and homophobia.[2]

Nigerian Witch Killings Primer

Let me put this in context.  Nigeria is a big place.  It is a nation of about 149 million people.  This witch killing is largely taking place in the Akwa Ibom State which has a population of only 3.9 million.  This in no way reflects the majority Nigerian opinion.  Because of international media attention, the Nigerian government has been clamping down on the practice that began only about a decade ago.   OK on to the Human Rights report.

Children accused of witchcraft were kidnapped, tortured, and killed. In September media reported that the public outcry and effort by the government, particularly in Akwa Ibom State, had caused a drop in new cases of children abused for alleged witchcraft. According to two local NGOs, Stepping Stones Nigeria (SSN) and the CRARN, attackers drove nails into children's heads, cut off fingers, tied children to trees, and abandoned them in the jungle. Self-proclaimed "bishop" Sunday Williams publicly claimed to have killed 110 child witches and asserted that Akwa Ibom had as many as 2.3 million witches and wizards among its population of 3.9 million. In 2008 authorities arrested Williams and charged him with torture and murder; he was arraigned in May 2009, and the case continued at year's end. The government did not acknowledge the wider problem of accusing children of witchcraft. The state governor, reacting to international press stories of persecution of children accused of witchcraft in Akwa Ibom, issued arrest warrants for the leaders of the SSN and the CRARN for alleged misappropriation of funds and personal gain. The cases were pending at year's end with outstanding warrants for the shelter's directors.

On September 24, in Akwa Ibom State, a father was arrested after he buried his six-year-old twin sons in a shallow grave; the boys were rescued when villagers heard their cries. The father believed the boys were wizards who were responsible for the death of his wife, their mother. The police asserted that they were ready to arrest anyone who committed a crime under the guise of witchcraft, but a clan leader complained that, rather than celebrating the father who discovered witchcraft in his children, the police were called.

 In July 2009 police in Eket, Awka Ibom State, raided the CRARN shelter that housed 150 abused and neglected children, some of whom had fled their homes after being accused of witchcraft. Police beat children who tried to stop the arrest of two staff members. The two were released later after the governor's office intervened; two girls, aged 11 and 12 years, were left unconscious.[2010 Human Rights Report: Nigeria]

Further Reading
[Children are targets of Nigerian witch hunt]
[Child 'witches' in Africa][Nigeria 'child witch killer' held]
[Children abused, killed as witches in Nigeria]

Update Christine O'Donnell is not a witch.