Chiefs, elders of Nyankpala given ultimatum to reintegrate banished ‘witch’

Chiefs and Elders of Nyankpala in the Northern Region who banished a 40 year old woman from the town on suspicion that she was a witch will have to reverse their decision or face legal action.

The chiefs took the decision to banish Rahinatu Abdulai and her entire family of 10 earlier this week because according to them, the woman was the cause of the ill health of a young lady of the area.

But their decision has sparked rage with a human advocacy group, the Anti-Witchcraft Campaign Coalition of Ghana.

The coalition has, therefore, issued a three week ultimatum to the chiefs and elders there to either re-integrate the banished woman or face legal action.

Coordinator of the coalition Kenneth Addae tells Joy News their investigation revealed that many other older women have been accused and have also been banished under similar circumstances.

Joy News’ Northern region correspondent Hasmin Mohammed reports that the area has six witch camps made up of 581 adults and 545 children.

Children of the alleged witches are equally worried as they tell Joy News they are faced with constant stigmatization especially when they go to school. Nobody wants to be our friend or sit close to us, one of the affected children narrated his ordeal.