In Kenya, `Witches' Are Hunted, Burned

KISII, Kenya - A fertile oasis nestled in the highlands of western Kenya, Kisii District is a farmer's paradise. Its flourishing countryside boasts 7-foot cornstalks, trees laden with bananas and endless acres of tea plantations.

But beneath the tranquil facade, a phenomenon reminiscent of the Salem witch trials in late 17th-century Massachusetts has plunged the close-knit Gusii tribe into a murderous frenzy.

Since last July, 44 men and women accused of practicing witchcraft have been burned to death in Kisii and neighboring Nyamira districts, according to police officials. In most cases, they said, village mobs several hundred strong locked the victims inside thatch-roof houses and set them on fire.

Kenyan President Daniel arap Moi has publicly denounced the killings and warned that vigilante witch- hunters will be prosecuted for murder. He also appealed to Kisii residents to report suspected witches to the police. Under a colonial law still on the books, anyone convicted of using black magic to cause fear or injury can be sentenced to as many as five years in prison.

But despite more than 50 arrests in connection with the burnings, the killings have continued at an average of almost one a week.

That witchcraft has deep roots in some African societies is nothing new. Good luck, as well as disease and death, are often attributed to the supernatural.

College students, professional athletes and even members of Parliament have been known to consult witch doctors for answers to their physical and metaphysical ills. This holds true even though many Kenyans are practicing Christians and Muslims.

According to Gusii beliefs, there are two kinds of witches: those who use their supernatural powers to perform good deeds and those who use black magic to harm others. What makes Kisii so unusual is the backlash against people suspected of practicing the dark arts for evil purposes.

"People have become hysterical about it, but they can't give you any concrete reason why except to say that these witches are instilling fear in people," said Kisii District Commissioner Harry Wamubeyi. "Most of the people killed were in their fifties, sixties and seventies who had been living in the community for all these years. So why, all of a sudden, do people think they are witches?"

He and other community leaders have searched in vain for an answer.

Some blame a worsening economy for heightened tensions. The district's growth in population, fast approaching 1 million, has led to land shortages, while at the same time youth unemployment has reached record levels.

But economics alone cannot explain the sudden hysteria that has left dozens of people dead and driven hundreds more from their ancestral homes.

In Kisii and coastal areas like Mombasa, beliefs in the supernatural are particularly strong.

"Our people don't believe that someone can die without there being some witchcraft involved," said Father Thomas Menge, head of the Sengere Catholic parish, which includes about 15,000 followers.

The most infamous killings occurred in early January when witch hunters burned four men and three women during a weekend, police said.

According to tribal elders, the Gusii have always executed people found to be witches.

"The witch would then be stoned to death on the spot," said Sanslaus Anunda, a 99-year-old tribal elder. "But nowadays, they're killing people without knowing if the person is a witch or not."