Justice, they say, is the first condition of humanity. That means justice is imperative for human existence and coexistence. Justice is necessary for any society to grow, develop and flourish. Any movement that gives primary consideration to the human being must take the quest for justice- the enthronement of a just society- seriously. Millions of people around the world are living, languishing, suffering and dying under unjust conditions imposed on them by fellow human beings. And this is particularly the case in Africa.

The humanist outlook cannot thrive in a situation of so much injustice and deprivation. Humanism cannot take a firm hold on a society where unjust institutions abound and oppression prevails.
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The issue of witch hunts and the ignominous role some christian church leaders popularly known as pastors have been playing have been in the news for a while.
In Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, South Africa, etc pastors are fueling and perpetrating witchcraft related abuses. Incidentally, for obvious reasons, few people have come out to openly and publicly condemn our so called men and women of God who are committing, aiding and abetting witchcraft related abuses. In this piece, I will proffer reasons why our pastors and their church members have suddenly become witch hunters, and have made witchcraft accusation the focus of their ministries. Before going ahead with my argument, I would like to make some clarifications. The belief in witchcraft predates the advent of christianity to Africa. Witchcraft claims are not part of those cultural ‘imports’ from the West. The belief that people can spiritually alter or undermine the fortunes of others has been with Africans for ages. So the persecution and execution of those alleged to be engaging in witchcraft activities have been going on in Africa before its contact with the West or East.
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The Nigerian author, Ben Okri in his book, A Way of Being Free, said, “There are many ways to die, and not all of them have to do with extinction. A lot of them have to do with living. Living many lies . Living without asking questions. Living in the cave of your own prejudices. Living the life imposed on you, the dreams and codes of your ancestors” I quite agree with him. The author did not make specific reference to any nation, race or continent. But any time I read this piece, it seems to me as if he is addressing Africans. Because I think Africans are dying in so many ways, in ways that many of them do not know. And some of them who know, do not care. Or they think that the situation is too bad to make a change.
Africans are dying but have not gone into extinction, and may not in the foreseeable future. So Africans are dying while they are living. Sounds like a contradiction? No, not at all. As Ben Okri said, dying in this case has to do with living. Africans are dying because Africans are living many lies. Africans are living without asking questions. Africans are living in the cave of their own prejudices. Africans are living the life imposed on them by others. I would like to explain this further.
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A STATEMENT BY THE INTERNATIONAL HUMANIST AND ETHICAL UNION AT THE 46TH SESSION OF THE AFRICAN COMMISSION ON HUMAN AND PEOPLE'S RIGHTS IN BANJUL THE GAMBIA November 11-24 2009 Read by Leo Igwe

The Chairperson

The International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) would like to draw the attention of the Commission to gross human rights violations that are committed because of fear of witchcraft across the region.

In Africa , the belief in witchcraft is strong, common and widespread. Over the years, claims of witchcraft have been used to abuse the universally recognized human rights enshrined in the African Charter on Human and People's Rights. In many African countries, to call somebody a witch automatically makes the person unqualified for human rights protection. To accuse somebody of witchcraft is like passing a death sentence on that person. Those accused of witchcraft are tortured, persecuted and killed. They are subjected to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment by gangs, mobs, pastors, witch doctors, parents and family members in the name of exorcism or to elicit confessions. Those alleged to be witches and wizards are victims of jungle justice, extrajudicial killing, forced exile and disappearance.
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The antiwitchcraft campaign in Africa has been criticized by a 'pagan religious group' in South Africa.See http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=6416194117&topic=14350 and http://www.paganrightsalliance.org/A%20Pagan%20Witches%20Touchstone.pdf A post from someone who appears to be a member this group regards the campaign as another assault on their religion and their human rights.
This fellow quoted from one of my articles http://culturekitchen.com/leo_igwe/blog/towards_a_humanist_awakening_in_...
where I said there were no witches, and that witches were imaginary entities, to buttress his point. He refered to the IHEU statement at the UN urging African states to improve the quality of education and policing in Africa as a way to eliminate witchcraft related human rights abuses.
It is obvious that this fellow misunderstood the issues at stake. And it is this kind of mistake and confusion that has undermined efforts to realize cultural renewal and rebirth in Africa.
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“…the African tribesman, with his complete contempt for truth and his emphasis on brutality and savagery for others but not for himself, is a no-civilization”. –L. Ron Hubbard, Scientology: The Fundamentals of Thought, Bridge Publications: Los Angeles, 1997

29 October 2009 - The Church of Scientology, recently fined for fraud in France, is making inroads in Africa. It has already infiltrated South Africa, Zimbabwe, Nairobi, Tanzania, Kenya, Nigeria and, in February this year, set up a school in Ghana.

It seems to have arrived in Africa without controversy, unlike its establishment in European countries where it has been beset by legal problems, bans and, as in France, not accepted as a genuine religion.

Scientology was established in 1953 by science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard and later rebranded as a religion. Many define it as a money-making cult that uses hypnotic techniques to control its members. Unusually, for a religion, members have to sign lengthy contracts and waivers before joining. It also has a vast security and intelligence network which it uses to infiltrate government agencies and foreign embassies and to persecute anyone critical of its practices.
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