People accused of witchcraft at the Gnani Camp in the Yendi Municipality of the Northern Region have made a passionate appeal to human rights activists and civil society organisations to help them reunite with their families.
They said although they would love to go home to be reintegrated with their respective communities and families, they were afraid to do so due to the attitude of their community members.
The alleged witches made the appeal when the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ActionAid International, Madam Joana Kerr, visited the camp as part of her one-day maiden working visit to the region.
She was accompanied on the visit by the Country Director of ActionAid Ghana, Madam Adwoa Kluvitse.
The camp has a total population of 949 people made up of 269 women, 51 men and 629 children. Unlike other camps in the region, the Gnani Camp has both males and females who have been accused of witchcraft.
The alleged witches, some of whom had stayed in the camp for 15 years and more, complained about the circumstances that made the people banish them from their respective communities.
They attributed the accusations levelled against them by some community members to “envy and jealousy” and described them as “baseless and wrong”, stressing that it should be condemned.
“For me it was just my rival who accused me of witchcraft and so I was brought here” one of the women stated.
Others claimed because of their hard work they were accused of using people for ritual purposes, particularly when they fell sick or died.
Some of the alleged witches also claimed they were banished from their communities because some “spiritualists” claimed they were possessed with witchcraft, when they were taken to their shrines.
The alleged witches thanked ActionAid for their immense support and hoped other non-governmental organisations would emulate the gesture.
Madam Kerr said there was the need to ensure that children at the camp had access to quality education.
She said she was encouraged by the “strength of the women in spite of their predicaments.
The CEO said such accusations were “unfounded purely because they have not been verified by a competent court of jurisdiction”.
She called for urgent steps to help stop those “inhuman treatment of people because it is unfair and unjustified”.
Madam Kerr assured the alleged witches that ActionAid would do all it could to help change the negative perception about the society towards them, adding, “We are in solidarity with you and we are standing behind you in your struggle to safeguard your rights”.
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