First Name:
Rachel
Last Name:
Duffus
Major Department:
Global Studies and Spanish
Thesis Director:
Jeanne Dubino
Date of Thesis:
May 2014
Belief in witchcraft pervades much of northern and sub-Saharan Africa and often results in extreme cases of violence in Ghana. Particularly in Ghana's rural north, the people are more inclined to blame common problems on supernatural causes, due to a lack of scientific knowledge. Sickness and environmental disasters strike the villages frequently, and a common explanation is witchcraft. Those accused of witchcraft are most often older women. Once accused, the women are chased and tortured; if the "witches" manage to survive the villagers' attacks, they are forced to flee to the only place of safety: witch camps. Situated on sacred land that deactivates the dark powers of witches, these camps allow the women to live unbothered by their former villagers. The sacred land, though, is extremely far removed from all other villages and inhabited territories, leaving the women completely to their own devices. As these women are typically older, it is a struggle for them to obtain even the simplest of necessities, such as water. Survival is extremely difficult, and they inevitably suffer. This thesis will define the tragedies that occur within the witch camps as elder abuse, which will be followed by suggestions as to how this new definition will allow for better aid that specifically addresses the needs of elders, such as improvements within Ghana's elder care system.