John 8:10: When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?”
If you have been to church once in your lifetime, you would probably be familiar with the story behind the verse quoted above. A woman was brought to Jesus to be sentenced for adultery. The men who brought the woman to Jesus emphasized that the woman was ‘caught in (the heat of) the act’, perhaps to demand a more severe sentence from Jesus, which would be death by stoning. Jesus gave the permission to go ahead with a condition: “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” He then bowed down his head. When he lifted up his head some minutes later, only the woman was left standing.
Late last week, we posted an article here about a Ghanaian woman, Amina, who was sexually molested by male students of the Mensah Sarbah Hall of the University of Ghana for stealing a laptop and cell phone from one of the dormitories. Amina was stripped naked, fondled and physically maltreated by the college rogues. According to news sources, the University Police who came to the scene arrested the battered woman and put her into custody while the male accusers were let go.
This was not an isolated case of violence against women and chromosome-dependent justice but a well-rooted tradition of male aggression against vulnerable women in most African communities. The village of Gambaga in Ghana has been a sanctuary for women accused of witchcraft. These women are ostracized and exiled from society by their accusers in a disturbing narrative while the Government of Ghana and local authorities watch on. Most of these women are elderly and through decades of neglect, want and lack of medical care are going through physiological and psychiatric disturbances that require counseling and therapy. However, in the absence help, medical or behavioral, the women are beaten and threatened with death and starvation until they confess to be witches under duress. In November of 2010, we reported the atrocious murder of a 72-year-old woman, Ama Hemmah, who was suspected of witchcraft in Ghana. She was beaten, tripped naked and doused with kerosene and then set aflame by her accusers who were also self-professed spiritual healers. The Foreman for the crusade, Pastor Samuel Fletcher Sagoe, asserted Ms. Hemmah was a witch who wished to do him and his family harm. A Gallup survey in Sub-Saharan African found that the belief in witchcraft is widespread. In the Ivory Coast 95% of people surveyed personally believe in witchcraft. In Ghana, the number is 77%, in Niger 75%, Zimbabwe 63% and South African 46%, just to mention a few. Changing these beliefs is a long journey, but changing the way suspects are treated should be attainable.
The introductory Biblical story suggests that this practice is a prehistoric custom that has lived 1000s of years. In the same vein that the men at Jesus time brought only the woman who was “caught in the act”, the University of Ghana Police apprehended the accused Amina and none of the law-breaking, irresponsible college students. When a person’s chromosomes determine how the law is applied to him or her in our time, Martin Luther King would probably not complain if the color of a person’s skin does the same.
For students in higher education to strip a suspected thief naked, insert their fingers into her private parts, fondle her breast and make fun of it on video is difficult to comprehend. I expect it to carry a more severe punishment that the theft because it was an assault on the woman’s personality and the dignity of more than 50% of human population. Our society needs to realize that illegality will never solve the problem evil.
I implore you to join hands in raising a loud voice against violence towards women in our society. Amina, Ama Hemmah and any of 1000s of the women in the Gambaga Witches Sanctuary could be my sister and your mother.
If you are interested in joining to fight these evils, please send an email to info@talkafrique.com or editorial@talkafrique.com find out how you can help.
We are sending a petition to the University Authorities and other influential sources to press the University to bring the rogues to justice immediately. Please click HERE to sign the petition.
The Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana has condemned last week’s sexual onslaught on a lady who allegedly stole a laptop and mobile phones from the Mensah Sarbah Hall annex B.
