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November 21, 2008 8:29:15 PM CST

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witchcraft

witchcraft news stories

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Murders Terrify Tanzanian Albinos

Killers sell
body parts for
use in witchcraft

Guardian (UK) Guardian (UK) Nov 4, 08 2:03 PM CST
(Newser) - Tanzanian Albinos are living in fear, "unsure of waking up in one piece," said one, as 30 have been killed this year for their body parts, the Guardian reports. Their pigment-free hair, skin, genitals, and extremities are used in witchcraft to bring enrichment, a “stupid belief,” says the country’s president. His support of a rally held by some of Tanzania's 200,000 albinos has been ineffective in curbing the killings. More »

More about:  murder • crime • Tanzania • witchcraft

ANALYSIS

 Downturns Spark 'Witch 
 Hunts' Against Elderly 

People lash out during tough times, researchers explain

Slate Slate Sep 20, 08 8:07 PM CDT
(Newser) - "Witch-hunting” is a hot term these days as angry Wall Street investors pine for revenge—but in some countries they take it literally, Tim Harford writes in Slate. In Tanzania, Bolivia, and India, elderly women are often targeted as witches when resources are scarce. Tanzanian women are killed by their own families: "The machete is the weapon of choice," Harford writes. More »

More about:  poverty • economics • Tanzania • witchcraft • witches

Congo Probes Witchcraft Stampede Deaths

13 killed after accusations of sorcery provoke fighting, panic

BBC BBC Sep 16, 08 11:00 CDT
(Newser) - Accusations of witchcraft led to a deadly stampede at a soccer game in the Congo, the BBC reports. Fighting broke out between rival teams after players from one team accused the rival team's goalkeeper of casting spells. Police intervened but were pelted with rocks by the crowd. They fired tear gas in response, and 13 were suffocated in a crush at the stadium exit. The Congolese government plans an investigation. More »

More about:  soccer • Democratic Republic of Congo • Congo • stampede • witchcraft • soccer riots • Kivu

Swiss Pardon Europe's
Last Executed Witch

Housemaid accused of casting spells was beheaded in 1782

Independent (UK) Independent (UK) Aug 28, 08 4:56 CDT
(Newser) - It's 226 years too late to restore her head to her body but the Swiss have decided to restore the good name of convicted witch Anna Goeldi, the Independent reports. Goeldi, the last person in Europe to be executed for witchcraft, was tortured and killed after being accused of casting spells to make a young girl convulse and spit pins. More »

More about:  Switzerland • pardon • witchcraft • witches • exonerate

Kenya Mob Torches 11
for Witchcraft

'Sorcerers' accused
of casting spells
on villagers

Associated Press Associated Press May 22, 08 8:15 CDT
(Newser) - A mob in western Kenya hunted down and killed 11 people they accused of being witches and wizards, AP reports. The gang went from house to house with a list of suspected sorcerers and the spells they had cast. The eight men and three women, most over 70, were lynched and burned in their homes in the notoriously superstitious district. More »

More about:  Africa • Kenya • witchcraft • witches • lynching

Africa's Child 'Witches' Abused, Abandoned

Superstition, poverty take ugly toll on Angolan, Congolese youth

New York Times New York Times Nov 15, 07 1:34 PM CST
(Newser) - Thousands of children in Angola, Congo, and the Congo Republic are being abused, abandoned, and even killed after being accused of witchcraft, the New York Times reports. Such accusations—born from tribal superstition and poverty that leaves some families unable to care for children—are a "massive" problem, sending hundreds of children alone into the streets of cities like Kinshasa and Luanda. More »

More about:  children • Africa • Democratic Republic of Congo • witchcraft • witches

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