It is very sad news. 5 persons in Indian state of Assam have been killed after some people thought that they were witches and caused evil to the people. Well, it is not an isolated incident at all. In fact, more and more people are being harassed in North Eastern part of India. And occasionally these innocent people get killed too. Since, 5 persons have been executed now it is becoming a big news in the local and international media. I am quoting from a report of the Hindu:
"Kokrajhar District Superintendent Police Hiren Nath told The Hindu that a Bodo couple and their 15-year old daughter were hacked to death in Nandipur forest village under Kachugaon police station when they were having supper.
In another incident, which occurred in Bijoynagar village, five km away, an adivasi couple were hacked to death by villagers the same night suspecting them to be witches.
The death toll, on account of superstition over witchcraft prevailing among a large section of people in Bodoland Territorial Council areas, has gone up to 11.
Earlier in the month six persons had been killed on suspicion of practising witchcraft."
It is very a depressing matter that whenever there is an outbreak of disease or failure of crops due to bad weather, many people start to suspect that it is an evil act of the witches. So, they try to find scapegoats and harassing innocent people for such common problems is becoming a part of every day life. Sometimes, some people try to accuse innocent families as witches simply because they have enmity with them or if they die they can capture their property. Even suppose that these persons were indeed witches (!!!), still, it is the duty of the court to punish them.
I always thought that witch hunt was mainly a European affair and a black part in European history. Yes, it was but these days, many things are getting outsourced from Europe and America to India- so why not witch hunt! It seems that some people of North East India have started to take this matter too seriously.
The people here are among the poorest in India and high mountains, forests and numerous rivers have put them in an unfavorable condition. So, the law enforcing agencies are helpless and the best way to tackle this problem is to educate the people. Indian government should allocate more funds for the development of the North Eastern states. An improvement in the living standard and spread of education is the best method to prevent such atrocities.
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I had no idea. Thanks, Razib.
Posted by: Laurie | August 26, 2006 9:10 PM | Permalink to Comment