Witchcraft Accusations and Elderly Abuse in Uganda

Nyakitabire, Uganda — Amid a prolonged drought that left fields of onions, potatoes, and beans desiccated, villagers, hungry and frustrated, sought someone to blame. Their scapegoat: Ayder Kanyomushana, an 81-year-old woman with gray hair and a slight stoop. Accused of witchcraft, Kanyomushana was brutally beaten by her neighbors, who believed that the pain and her ensuing tears would bring the much-needed rain. "They almost killed me," she recounts. Such superstition-driven violence, particularly against the elderly, is a troubling phenomenon in parts of Africa. With an aging population on the continent, some fear this issue might grow.

Reports indicate a worrying trend of older individuals with dementia being targeted due to misunderstandings about their condition. Regardless of the reasons, the consequences can be devastating. Although three years have passed since Kanyomushana was first accused, hostility hasn't waned. Surprisingly, after the initial assault, the rains returned, reinforcing misguided beliefs about her supposed powers. More recently, villagers vandalized her small garden. "See what we'll do to you," threatened one boy. Reach One Touch One Ministries, a local organization, stepped in to provide her protection and confronted the villagers, warning of potential legal repercussions.

Kanyomushana is unsure how these suspicions began, albeit noting that a missing piece of bark cloth, which someone might have shown to a local witch doctor, could have spurred the accusations. The witch doctor, Fredianah Tibeijuka, asserts that Kanyomushana is indeed a witch. Despite harboring a blend of herbs and curios believed to cure ailments like swelling or poverty, Tibeijuka stands by her condemnation of Kanyomushana, showing no intent to reconsider her stance.

Across Africa, the narrative is recurrent. Leo Igwe of Advocacy for Alleged Witches in Nigeria highlights that over 70% of the accusations his organization handles involve older adults. He suggests such allegations are sometimes convenient excuses for families wishing to abandon elderly members. Although accusations span both genders, women often face harsher violence, including beatings and killings.

Despite progress in some regions, supernatural beliefs remain entrenched. Some, even victims of accusations, struggle to relinquish their belief in witchcraft. Alice Mary Nasanga, banished by her family over alleged witchery, ponders whether witchcraft could explain her son's puzzling illness, which followed a bout with malaria.

Data on witchcraft accusations is scant, complicating efforts to gauge trends. However, Igwe suggests economic fluctuations influence the frequency of cases, with downturns like the current one in Africa leading people to look toward supernatural explanations for their hardships. As dementia rises with the aging population, instances of older people being accused due to their cognitive struggles are expected to grow.

Dr. Temitope Farombi, a geriatric neurologist in Nigeria, launched the "Dementia Not Witchcraft" campaign to raise awareness. Her initiative responds to violent attacks on wandering elders misperceived as threats. Similarly, Berrie Holtzhausen with Alzheimer's Dementia Namibia educates communities on dementia, aiming to prevent witchcraft-related violence through understanding. Familiarity with dementia is rare, turning it into a convenient explanation for behavior villagers find unusual.

Holtzhausen recounts the questions he often hears: "Why can't they find their way back from the river? Why are they talking to themselves at night?" These inquiries demonstrate how being different or aging is perilously misunderstood as witchcraft. (AP) GRS GRS

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