'Witch' Burned Alive in Papua New Guinea

A young woman accused of witchcraft was doused with gasoline and burned to death on a pyre of car tires in Papua New Guinea, reports the Telegraph. The girl, aged between 16 and 21, was accused of spreading AIDS to one of her murderers in an extra-marital affair. Black magic has seen resurgence as the Pacific island nation grapples with a HIV epidemic.

“The girl was stripped naked and could not shout for assistance or resist, as she was tightly strapped and her mouth gagged,” says a 21-year-old witness. Adds the region’s police chief, “I don’t know the right words to describe it, but it’s barbaric. Can you find the best words to describe such acts that are rampant here?” (More Papua New Guinea stories.)