Accused of Witchcraft and Murdered for Their Land

Over in Kenya, there has been a sudden surge of elderly people accused of witchcraft then murdered along the Kilifi coast.  Seventy-four-year-old Tambala Jefwa recently survived two attacks and shared his story with the BBC.  Jefwa was accused of being a witch and has been attacked twice in his home 50 miles inland from the coastal town of Malindi. The first left him without an eye. The second nearly killed him.

Jefwa and his wife own more than 30 acres of land where they grow maize and raise a few chickens. There has been a dispute with family members over boundaries. They believe this was the real reason Jefwa was almost killed, not that people genuinely believed he was a witch.  “I was left for dead. I lost so much blood. I don’t know why they attacked me, but it can only be the land,” said Jefwa.

Belief in witchcraft and superstition is common in many countries.  But in parts of Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania and South Africa, it can be used to justify killing elderly people to take their land.  A report called "The Aged on Edge" by Kenyan human rights organization Haki Yetu says one elderly person is murdered along the Kilifi coast every week in the name of witchcraft. Its program officer, Julius Wanyama, says many families believe it is one of their own who orders the killing.  “They use the word witchcraft as a justification because they will get public sympathy. And people will say: ‘If he was a witch, it is good you have killed him.’”

Few people in this region have title deeds for their land. Without a will, they rely on passing it down customarily through the family. Wanyama says seven out of 10 of the killings are elderly men because land ownership and inheritance lie with them.  “Historically people here in Kilifi do not have [land] documentation. The only document they have is the narrative from these elderly people. That is why mostly men are being killed, because once you kill them, then you have removed the obstacle,” said Wanyama.

In traditional African culture, the elderly are revered for their wisdom and knowledge.  But in Kilifi, it is the reverse. Old people are so fearful of becoming a target, many dye their hair in an attempt to look younger.  It is rare for someone in this region to survive after being accused of witchcraft.  For men like Tambala Jefwa there is real fear that whoever tried to murder him will come back.