The witchcraft law is a legal framework separating criminality from traditional cultural practices.
Witchcraft refers to the self-proclaimed ability to wield magical powers and supernatural forces with the intent to harm others, manipulate their actions against their will, and encourage and instigate crime.
Indeed, witchcraft is practised in various communities across Nigeria, including Anambra State.
The penal and criminal codes contain sections that prohibit witch crimes, designating it as a federal offence.
However, individual states in Nigeria have legal rights to legislate witch crime to address their local concerns, as in the case of Akwa Ibom state.
It’s somewhat surprising that this particular federal law receives limited attention in the psychology of Anambrians about the state government’s obligation to uphold it.
Sections 210, 211, 212, and 213 of the Criminal Code provide a comprehensive framework regarding the definition, culpability, and penalties associated with witch crime.
Sections 207, 208, and 209 of the Penal Code also outline the prohibition of witch-crime practices and its prescribed punishment.
The Criminal Code as it applies in Anambra State, a jurisdiction that has strengthened its enforcement obligation of the law and where courts within the state hold the jurisdiction to order the dismantling of locations where witch crimes or juju are practised.
If the intentions behind sections 210, 211, 212, and 213 of the Criminal Code are correctly understood by the state’s citizens, then enforcement needn’t suffer impediments.
RELEVANT SECTIONS:
Section 210a:
Outlines the definitions and criteria for identifying a witch.
Section 210b:
safeguards against discrimination and false accusations.
Section 210c:
Enumerates the criminal acts associated with witchcraft that are strictly prohibited.
Section 210d:
This section is particularly notable because it holds the witches, their clients, and worshippers equally accountable for witch crimes. What stands out in this section is its readiness to embrace any prohibitory orders issued by the president or state governor.
Section 210e:
Classifies human body parts as materials linked to witch crime, and possessing them with the intent to use them for witch crime practices constitutes a new crime.
Section 210f:
This section pre-adopts any executive prohibitions of witch crime which are on their preparatory level and which is believed to be associated with human sacrifice or any other illegal activities.
Section 211:
Traditional leaders within communities are prohibited from allowing, engaging in, being aware of, or failing to report prohibited practices occurring within their jurisdictions.
Section 212:
This section empowers the authorities to eliminate sites where unlawful rituals or prohibited juju practices occur.
Section 213:
This provision bans any materials or charms claimed to possess protective powers or are believed to obstruct the detection and prosecution of criminals.
The definitions of witchcraft crime in the penal and criminal codes appear to provide a consistent framework across the Nigerian Federation, where witchcraft cases can be prosecuted in both the magistrate and federal high courts.
The human rights freedom, as outlined in the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is also freedom which must not trampled upon through witch crime means.
JURISPRUDENCE.
Laws and regulations are frequently based on jurisprudence principles, which thoughtfully weave cultural norms and traditions into legal frameworks through established theories and practical guidelines. These laws can be repealed to reflect evolving realities and sensibilities of the larger community.
A notable example is the English law on witchcraft, which was enacted in the 15th century and experienced numerous repeals until the 20th century. This legislation was diluted as public attitudes shifted over time. As a result, the practice of witchcraft in England has largely faded, with the few remaining practitioners transforming their roles into entertainers and illusionists, practising in ways that are neither harmful nor illegal. Nonetheless, witchcraft-related offences can still occur in England, albeit in secrecy.
In Nigeria, the Criminal Code Act, which was drafted by Sir Henry Nicholls and Sir William Samuel Morris in 1916 and implemented the following year, also underwent a revision regime. Some sections of the criminal code law currently address witch-related crimes (sections 210-213). Interestingly, the traditions, religions, and belief systems prevalent in Nigeria deny witch-crime activities, indicating that the behavioural norms of the citizens are significantly represented in the criminal code law.
In Igbo land, individuals accused of witchcraft often face social ostracism, being removed or banished from their communities. Consequently, cases involving alleged witches are not uncommon in Igbo society.
Recently, in Anambra State, some native practices have come to fall under the definition of witch crimes as outlined in the criminal code rather than the traditional medical practices of physical and spiritual healing.
Some public statements made by witch practitioners in the Anambra, along with their conspiratorial overtones, incitements, and their operational methods, provide clear evidence that “witch crimes” are still being committed despite the state’s obligation to enforce these laws through executive orders and trials in the magistrate and federal high courts, with penalties of up to two years of imprisonment, as enshrined.
THE PROVABILITY OF WITCH CRIMES.
Some scholars believe that proving witchcraft in a criminal court is challenging. However, this perspective only holds if the standards for proof are not firmly rooted in the law’s golden intentions, context and content.
The English authors of the Criminal Code Act understood they had solved a mystery. They effectively crafted a definition that delineates both the crime and the criminal. Thus, the provability of witch crime lies in the golden interpretation of the contexts and content of the related sections of the criminal code law, with the purpose of upholding the citizen’s constitutional rights as enshrined in the 1999 constitution of the federal Republic of Nigeria.
CONCLUSION.
It is commendable that the Anambra state government has taken this pivotal opportunity to fulfil its responsibilities by enforcing the witchcraft law in alignment with the relevant provisions of the criminal code.
However, enhanced awareness initiatives are urgently needed to help citizens of Anambra grasp the state’s enforcement regime, which complies with existing laws but is not a brand-new policy. This will be achieved through continuous sensitisation efforts, which would counter any unhealthy political manoeuvring that might emerge. Therefore, as the criminal code sections suffice, I urge the state to consider independent prohibition legislation on witch crimes.
