600 trokosi liberated in the Volta region

Mr. Austin Gamey, Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Welfare, has stated that churches owe it a duty to condemn the practice of 'trokosi' and see to its total abolition. "I challenge you to go to the hinterlands where the practice is real and preach against it and stop preaching social gospel just because of the little contributions that the members would offer."

Mr. Gamey was speaking at a durbar at Adidome in the Volta region at which more than 600 women and men serving at four shrines at Avakpe in vakpedome, Koeloe in Mafi Dugame, Venor and Tsadume, both at Old Bakpa, were liberated. All the shrines are located at Mafi and Bakpa in the North Tongu district of the Volta region. Fetish Slaves Liberation Movement (FESLIM) and International Needs, Ghana, (ING), both non-governmental organizations, organized the exercise. Mr. Gamey, who is also the MP for the area, stated: "if any woman voluntary walks to any shrine and requests the fetish priest to allow her to continue serving there, let it be. But if it is the result of someone else's sin committed, Ghanaians are against it, humanity is against and the laws of the land are against it."

The Reverend Walter Pimpong, Executive Director of ING, said his outfit has since its inception liberated 1,600 women from 32 shrines. He said what makes the exercise unique is the initiative of the shrine owners to ask for assistance to free the women. Rev Pimpong said ING would provide 216,000 cedis for each of the women to help them establish income-generating activities. He was grateful to all those who have contributed in diverse ways to make the exercise a reality.

The Reverend Dr. Samuel Asante-Antwi, Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Conference, said every institution worth its establishment should see to it that every human being, irrespective of their geographical area or cultural status, has the right to freedom.

Mr. Mark Wisdom, Executive Director of FESLIM, said the total eradication of the trokosi system is their desire. He said, however, that this would not be complete until it is linked up with the liberation of fetish slaves from other nefarious customary practices such as 'Yewhe', 'Agbosu' and 'Korko'.

Trokosi is a practice that is common among people in the Volta, Greater Accra and parts of Eastern regions where young girls are sent to the shrines to atone for sins committed by their family members. While serving there, they automatically become the wives of the fetish priests. Although some of them are allowed to go out and marry, they still owe allegiance to the shrine.

Two men who were sent to serve as slaves in the shrine because there were no females to serve in their family were also set free. A counseling team from ING is presently conducting a needs assessment of the liberated women over the next four weeks.