NGO Reports – All

New Hope for Survivors as they Celebrate Historic UN Resolution Condemning Harmful Practices Related to Accusations of Witchcraft and Ritual Attacks

New Hope for Survivors as they Celebrate Historic UN Resolution Condemning Harmful Practices Related to Accusations of Witchcraft and Ritual Attacks

Following 6 years of intensive advocacy by a coalition of survivors, NGOs, academics and lawyers, the UN Human Rights Council has passed a ground-breaking resolution, which “emphatically condemns harmful practices related to accusations of witchcraft and ritual attacks that result in human rights violations.

PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – 27th July 2021

 

 

Women in Gambia Describe Torture After Ex-President Called Them Witches: New York Times

Gambia’s former president ordered people he accused of “witchcraft” to be kidnapped and tortured. The victims now plan to tell a truth commission what happened. See article here. 

WHRIN Releases Latest UN Report

Witchcraft Accusations and Persecution; Muti Murders and Human Sacrifice:Harmful Beliefs and Practices Behind a Global Crisis in Human Rights

This report was specifically compiled for the United Nations Expert Workshop on Witchcraft and Human Rights, in Geneva on 21st and 22nd September 2017.

The report outlines a study of all recorded online cases of human rights abuses linked to beliefs in witchcraft, muti and human sacrifice in 2016.  It aims to provide some background understanding into the work carried out by the United Nations on these issues to date; outline the current scale of the abuses of human rights that are taking place across the world due such harmful beliefs and practices; identify emerging trends and, finally, act as a call to action for all UN, Government and civil society agencies working on these issues to redouble their efforts to develop solutions to prevent further abuses from taking place.

The full report can be downloaded HERE

21st Century Witchcraft Accusations

Being accused of witchcraft, black magic or other forms of evil, can result in serious violations of human rights including, at the most extreme, torture and death. This happens all around the world. Women, children, the disabled and the elderly are particularly vulnerable to these forms of abuse.

See full article here

Ghana: Actionaid Report – ‘Condemned without trial: women and witchcraft in Ghana’

In northern Ghana hundreds of women accused of witchcraft by relatives or members of their community are living in ‘witch camps’ after fleeing or being banished from their homes.

In 2011 the Ghanaian government announced that the witch camps should be closed down as soon as 2012. ActionAid is firmly against the closure of the camps in such as short space of time, because although they can be seen as ghettos, the camps do provide a safe haven for women accused of witchcraft. The women themselves say they would prefer to stay in the camps rather than face discrimination or risk violence or death back home.

Read more here

Uganda: ‘No Small Sacrifice’ – Child sacrifice in Uganda, in a global context of cultural violence

Violence occurs in many different forms across the world, at work, school, in the community and at home. Children are more often victims of violence than adults, because they are dependent on others for their daily care. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights gives every individual – including children – the right to a life free from all forms of
violence.

The first chapter of this report looks at violence against children – and child sacrifice in particular – from a global perspective; outlining the legal framework, and key facts and figures. The second chapter addresses these with particular
reference to Uganda. The report concludes with recommendations.

Read the report here

Witch-hunts in South Africa – Advocacy against Human Rights Abuses Committed as a Result of Accusations of Witchcraft and Violent Witch-hunts, 2014

The vast majority of victims of accusation of witchcraft, both deceased and still living, in South Africa have been and are being denied their legal right to all of these constitutional rights. Accusations of witchcraft are not condoned under the constitutional rights to freedom of religion, belief and opinion, or expression, as incitement to propaganda for war; incitement of imminent violence; or advocacy of hatred based on race, ethnicity, gender or religion, that constitutes incitement to cause harm, is not protected under South African law. Accusations of witchcraft and resulting witch-hunts constitute a series of clearly identified crimes under both international and national law.

See full report here

CORI Thematic Report Nigeria: Gender and Age December 2012

Country of Origin Information (COI) is required within Refugee Status Determination (RSD) to provide objective evidence on conditions in refugee producing countries to support decision making. Quality information about human rights, legal provisions, politics, culture, society, religion and healthcare in countries of origin is essential in establishing whether or not a person’s fear of persecution is well founded.

CORI Country Reports are designed to aid decision making within RSD. They are not intended to be general reports on human rights conditions. They serve a specific purpose, collating legally relevant information on conditions in countries of origin, pertinent to the assessment of claims for asylum. Categories of COI included within this report are based on the most common issues arising from asylum applications made on the basis of gender and age by Nigerian nationals. This report covers events up to 10 December 2012.

See full report here

The rights of older people in Mozambique – HelpAge Research summary 2012

Information on the extent to which older people enjoy their human rights in Mozambique is rarely available or included in the State’s reports to human rights monitoring and accountability mechanisms.

In response to this lack of data, HelpAge International carried out a survey in 2012 with 104 women and men over the age
of 50 in Mozambique. This summary illustrates the key findings of the survey. These findings provide evidence of gaps in the protection of older people’s human rights and reinforce the need for national and international action, mechanisms and processes to ensure that the human rights of older people are better addressed.

See full report here

Hunting Witches – World Policy Journal Article by WHRIN

Article by Gary Foxcroft, Executive Director, WHRIN. Read full article here 

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