witchdoctor handbill

In Zambia witchcraft is still very prevalent. In the bush witchdoctors hold positions of power over entire villages. We've heard of people being able to fly and change into animals, less supernatural but more disturbing are reports of infanticide and cannibalism. In northern Zambia and especially in Tanzania there are lots of reports of gruesome murders of African albinos – their body parts are used in various types of charms, potions, and other magic. Some of our teammates have seen this type of stuff but thankfully we've only heard of it. Here in the city the use of magic and charms is still very prevalent and when the local witchdoctors hand out flyers like this you know that they are reaching out to a large number of people. Many, many Zambians live in constant fear of the power that other people’s magic has over their lives. They fear upsetting the spirits and worry constantly about pleasing the dead to keep them from returning to cause bad events in their lives. If there is sickness or death in the family, a loss of employment or marital trouble, many people assume that the reason is due to a curse or hex that someone has paid a witchdoctor to put on them. So even in urban Lusaka you can see that the fear of bad juju, charms and other magic can lead to many troubles including revenge, murder, suicide, infanticide and worse.Witchdoctors also began and continue to promote practices such as widow cleansing and the "virgin cure,"(click here or here for more) two things that promote the spread of HIV/AIDS and the rape of women and children. Here’s a little sample of what your local witchdoctor might offer.