By Abayomi Elias
Participants at the Roundtable Discussion
Ahead of August 10 activity set aside to commemorate world day against Witch Hunt, Advocacy For Alleged Witches partnered National Human Right Commission Lagos State chapter to make everyone stakeholders towards ending the abuse meted on people perceived as witches in various communities in Nigeria.
Newsconnect reports that the Executive Director of Advocacy for Alleged Witches Dr Leo Igwe at the roundtable discussion with the theme christened “STOP JUNGLE JUSTICE, WITCH HUNTS AND RITUAL ATTACKS IN LAGOS STATE said witchcraft accusation is a real life issues not academic, hence it is important to start advocacy with people towards addressing the real cause of the menace.
Leo in an Interview with Newsconnect correspondents at the event said;
“They would say an elderly woman turned to bird and landed on the tree and then turned human being when landed on the ground. They lynched the person and attack the person.
”We need to start having that conversation to know if people actually fly ? Do they actually turn to birds? And if they turn to birds why ? why is it elderly women and all that?.
“We want people to go out from here and understand that the conversation has started, and we have to begin to do whatever we can to make witch hunting history in our country just like it is in the other parts of the world.
“We have to be evidence driven when making sure of our misfortunes, otherwise, you would kill innocent persons and that is exactly what is happening when it comes to this accusations.
”Since 2020, I have been supporting victims, helping them get justice wherever we can and helping them with humanitarian assistants.
”August 10 is the world day against Witch hunt, this is an activity in anticipation of that world day against witch hunts which takes place on Sunday.
“We are trying to create awareness that there are so many people suffering abuses, horrific attacks in the name of witchcraft or in the name that some people think they can make ritual money out of killing them, torturing them or maltreating them.
”We want to create that awareness, we want the conversation to start. Because we take it for granted whenever such cases is reported in the media and after that, it continues as usual.
”Until another person is killed, another person is being lynched and all that. We want people to begin to debate and understand what is driving this problem.
“The world is laughing at us, they think we are barbaric, primitive people and all that. They think we are killing human beings. It is not that the atrocities are not being committed else where, but here, looking at it like something is wrong with us.
”I assure you not everybody is in support of what is going on, there are people who are still against ritual attacks or killing of other human beings.
”So we are creating awareness, starting the conversation, making everybody a stakeholder, making everybody an advocate.
“We want to go away from here with some form of consciousness and the understanding that we can’t take this for granted anymore”. He said.
Dr Lucas Koyejo the coordinator of National Human Right Commission and other stakeholders in the civil society space shared their positions at different Intervals on the issue.