Sorcery As A Source Of Violence And Conflict In The Melanesian Society
Introduction
Sorcery is the supernatural inhuman being with vigor that brings transformation to the societies. Sorcery in Melanesia mean that misfortune, accidents, illness and decease are commonly thought purposely triggered by individuals through the use of supernatural powers, rather than resulting from natural causes. In turn, this may lead to violent responses against those accused of sorcery which can involve prolonged torture, public executions, riots, warfare, banishment of individuals and entire families, and burning of houses and other property damage. These responses differ enormously in type and scale around the region, and are at their most extreme in parts of Papua New Guinea (PNG). However, in many other areas of PNG and Melanesia in general, sorcery- and related concerns are dealt with through non-violent community mechanisms. Like other countries in Melanesia — in particular Fiji, New Caledonia Vanuatu Solomon Islands the Papua New Guinea population of more than 7 million consists of people with a diverse and rich cultural and linguistic heritage. Within this cultural diversity and richness, there are good and bad practices which some people still maintain and apply widely in some communities today. However common and widely known example of a bad cultural practice in Melanesian countries today is sorcery including related killings. Generally, the forms of sorcery and as a negative force, and any related killings, vary from country to country and island to island in Melanesia. This also applies to the views and reactions of the people including authorities in the communities, churches and governments in this region.
This report is an overview of research findings that were conducted as a part of the Security and Community Initiative Research (SACIR) project in North Ambenob LLG District of the Madang Province, working with affected people to explore their own situation, develop their own criteria of risk and determine local solutions to these problems. The aim of the study was to explore how individuals and communities perceived insecurity, and how this related to incidences of violence; looking at the nature of violence and conflict, common triggers and impacts. At all sites that were visited, sorcery was often mentioned as a trigger and source of violence and conflict in the community.
The reason why I carry out this report to describe those findings related to the practice of sorcery and how this relates to insecurities faced in many families and the wider community in my District. The results are presented here in the context of recent literature on sorcery, in particular important studies by the Health Services with IMR (Institute of Medical Research) and the Melanesian Institute. It is hoped that this research will help to increase the understanding amongst Oxfam staff of the nature and consequences of belief in sorcery and the role of the church and judiciary.
Background
In an incident in 2012 a woman almost killed her husband and one of his relatives. One night the husband wanted to sleep with his wife and suddenly she pushed him flying into the air and he landed against the wall of their house. Before he fell unconscious he saw a rat entering his wife through her private parts. When he regained consciousness his wife told him she had received the area from another woman and it was impossible to get rid of it from her body. The husband called the chiefs to investigate the wife’s involvement in this practice. After the chiefs confirmed that she had the area, the husband told her to go back to her family. Early this year two brothers and their families were sent from their homes due to suspicion of practicing area and have gone back to their father’s original home in another part Today for instance, there are women and men who believe in God as well as in the power of using sorcery in meeting either their own or other family members’ needs in any difficult situation. For example, if a family member is sick or a business is not gaining any profits, the first thing to do is pray for healing or revelation of the person or whatever forces may be causing the problems. When nothing happens, a priest, sorcerer or witch may be called upon to find out the causes or treat the effects with traditional medicine or offer a prayer. In return they will be paid or be given an offering, therefore benefiting economically from any services they provide.
The majority of Papua New Guineans do not accept natural causes as an explanation for misfortunes such as sickness, accidents or death - instead these are attributed to supernatural causes which we have grouped under the collective term of” Sorcery” Those accused of Sorcery are considered to have deliberately caused misfortune through use of supernatural powers; they are usually punished by death, injury, destruction of property or exile. Police reports show that victims have been buried alive, beheaded, choked to death, thrown over cliffs or into rivers or caves, starved, axed, electrocuted, suffocated with smoke, forced to drink petrol, stoned or shot. Furthermore In Papua New Guinea terms such as the pidgin POISON MAN, poison (together with a multitude of terms in local languages) may be understood in different ways including: the possession of people by evil beings which take animal form and which confer supernatural powers on their hosts (usually referred to as Turbid in Bell language ); forcing of a harmful object or substance into the victim so that they become sick or die, control of external powers intrinsic to the person of the sorcerer which enable that person to inflict sickness or death by willpower alone; and the ability to become invisible or to fly. Sorcery may involve contagious magic (malevolent actions on the ‘leavings’ of a person), or involve causing direct physical harm to the victim. In this report, as in Gibbs and Wailoni (2009), we have decided to use the capitalized word Sorcery to cover all these, meaning the use of magical power to influence events. There is a perception that sorcery related attacks are increasing in many boarding school, although this may be partly due to a recent surge in media interest in the phenomenon; a lack of data on the past make true comparisons difficult. The study by the Health Services and Institute of Medical Research (IMR) suggests an increase in the number of sorcery-related attacks. The Health Services conducted an inquiry into the growing number of people suspected of being sorcerers presenting to health services for treatment.
Simple Profile of sorcery in Madang Province and North Ambenob district
Madang Province is made up of six districts; this study was conducted in the North Ambenob District situated in the central part of the province. The reason for the choice of this district was the presence of Oxfam’s partner, Community Development Agency.
The part of the Melanesian Institute study which focuses on Madang with IMR looked at records kept in hospitals, police stations and church which then formed the basis for interviews to be carried out. Madang Province police records showed 67 Incidents relating to Sorcery from August 2016 to January 2017 in which 92 people were accused of Sorcery and were severely injured or killed. According to these records Madang had the highest number of cases with 32 persons in total injured or killed in sorcery related attacks (13 men and 19 women); of these, 26 died from their injuries. The majority of these victims were in the 40-65 age range for both men and women. Modilon Hospital records supported this with 75% of the cases presenting for treatment of sorcery-related injuries were elderly. Again, proportionally more females (31/48) than males presented (17/48). The police records suggest that MADANG is the most affected district both in terms of the number of sorcery-related incidents and the incidence of fatal attacks on the accused. These official records show a slightly higher proportion of cases affecting women rather than men, but interviews suggest that the disparity is in fact much greater, most respondents suggesting that women bear the brunt of sorcery accusations and attacks.
Ethical Considerations
Ethical consideration is very important when conducting research on insecurity and requires an extreme sensitivity to the context and to the needs of the participants. Many participants have been traumatized by many years of conflict and internal displacement. Others have suffered long term violence in marriage or within the family. Consent was thus sought prior to interviews being carried out and confidentiality was maintained and emphasized to participants throughout the interview.
Ethical considerations also demand that the findings should be presented back to the community. Presentation of initial findings was duly made to each community, encouraging young people and women to do the presentation. These events represented an opportunity for discussion and debate on main issues that were identified through the research. Participants at all study sites confirmed that the data presented was a true impression of their community.
Research findings
Every society has its own explanations of the world and is interested about how and why things happen the way they do. Madang people like those in other parts of PNG and in the rest of Melanesia have a deep commitment to family relations, strong connections with the land and beliefs in the spiritual world. These beliefs and customs are passed through oral history: ancestral stories and myths promote this idea of a non-empirical world that has an influence on the physical realm. The study showed that feelings of insecurity were closely linked to this belief system. In the community mapping exercise, places of insecurity were identified by participants. People fear both the spirits of the dead and locations associated with them, including cemeteries and places where deaths had occurred such as battle-fields, rivers where people had drowned or sites of intentional killings.
Summary, Recommendation and Conclusion
Firstly, this case report generally addresses a cases of sorcery in Madang with the communication gap between rural and urban society and their increasing rate of deaths caused by sorcery.
A vital part to creating and implementing an effective community based policy, plan, strategy or developments, its foremost basic need is to carry out a participatory assessment. We must ensure our decisions are not biased. The report done by researchers showed us what the government is providing and how they have been implemented so far. If we can have so many policies and strategic planning to discuss this how sure are we to say they will stop the sorcery in PNG given our cultural and developmental background.
Such issues should not be taken lightly by the society and the Government. Police officers should be held accountable for any violence towards sorceress. More awareness should be given to everyone about the policies in place and intended one so as to make the implementation more effective. If we don’t know about the policies, how can we implement them? Communication with society, law and justice and government are open and accessible for the purpose of transferring information on the state of not only the sorcery but other un ethical issues of PNG in general. Carry out public awareness in rural and urban areas teaching younger children ethically about the consequences of committing such activity.
Conclusion
This research has indicated to us a gap in social development and communication which will need further research as to why we, living in a Melanesian society where community is important, have social exclusion becoming a problem that is hindering national and human growth. It is evident that western influence is a major factor to the types of societies we have today especially in the rural and urban areas. The report shows the sorcery and is a negative force on economic and social development.
