LB Thapa, Pokhara
Nepalese women are still suffering from several discriminatory practices. They are tortured, harassed, dragged, raped and sometimes even beaten to death on various charges one being the witchcraft. Although the law has guaranteed them equal rights, such laws are only limited in the book.
Our media is replete with the news of women beaten up for practicing witchcraft. There are many villages in the country where the light of education has not reached and the people are under the impression of superstition. Quite often old, weak and single women are targeted and accused of practicing witchcraft. Such women are unable to defend themselves and become an easy object to be tortured by the
villagers. Sometimes the alleged witches are forced to eat or forcefully fed human excreta. On many occasions, the angry mob turned violent and took the lives of the victims. Now and then media report such embarrassing news. It highlights the gravity of the problem that demands urgent action without further delay.
In a recent past, Suk Bahadur Saru, 51, a local resident of Mityal VDC in Palpa district was accused of practicing witchcraft and troubling local people and their livestock. The local village court did also confirm his crime. Then what! The crowd lynched the man to death. Later, Suk Bahadur Saru’s body was thrown from a cliff to conceal the crime.
In another incident Dik Bahadur Bhujel of Karmaiya VDC, Sarlahi, killed Goma Devi Singdali, 70, and Ratna Maya Subedi, 60. He killed them with a large knife accusing them of causing stomach pain that lasted for three weeks. It sounds ridiculous but it is true.
Yet another shocking incident took place in 2001 in Simardahi where then VDC chiarman Nawal Kishor Sahani hired Ram Kripal Pandit (Indian national) and asked him to identify witches in his village. For the purpose, Sahani decreed all village women to assemble at one place for the Witch Identification Parade. Meanwhile, some clever villagers smelled rat with Sahani’s intention. They stood against Sahnai and asked him to release their wives or they would inform the police. Hence, the idea of parading women for the identification of witches was dropped.
Even in Kathmandu, the capital city, such incident takes place time and again.
Such inhuman activities are of course the result of illiteracy, superstition and poverty. On top, weak implementation of law is also responsible to a great deal. Had these perpetrators afraid of the legal punishment, they would have never executed such a heinous act against women.
It has already been explained by several psychologists that ghosts and spirit do exits only in the weak minds. They have no existence in real life. Dr Biswombandhu Sharma, Nepal’s leading psychologist, has said that only those people who are mentally weak do believe in the spirits and ghosts. Such stuff is the creation of a weak mind. A healthy brain is strong and doesn’t come under any such influence. "Many times it happens with the people when they are not ready to accept bad happenings with them. They simply blame others for their misfortunes. This give birth to superstitions" added Sharma.
Let’s not forget that if a person’s body becomes dysfunctional, for this, nothing else but only his body is responsible. Such physical ailments, if someone claims to treat through a litany of spells, it is nothing but only superstition. The truth is that all physical troubles need medical treatment to get rid of them. There are some people involved in some kind of shamanic practice. They take the advantage of gullible people and make them believe that a witch or a spirit is behind their miseries. In a country like Nepal where unemployment is so high, these illiterate shamans find it an effortless way to make a living.
Normally, it is experienced that mental related illness mostly attacks those women who are physically and mentally weaker. Hence, at times we see some women exhibiting strange behaviours beyond one’s comprehension. For this reason if any women undergoes through such hysteria or convulsion, it is nothing but a kind of mental illness. Whenever a symptom of such illness is seen in any woman, the best thing is to take her to the psychologist. A regular treatment and family support can soon make her strong enough to fight back the weaknesses.
Dr. Arati Poudel, working at the western region Gandaki Hospital, Pokhara, presently in Oman says, "If there is any secret education like Boksi Vidhya then why only women but many men would have learnt the art so that they could settle scores against their enemies. The strange fact is that why only women are blamed for being a witch, but not a man. Its only answer is they are weak and helpless. And if she has been abandoned by her husband, she becomes even more vulnerable. Has media ever reported a single piece of news where a rich and influential woman has been accused of practicing witchcraft? The answer is a big No".
Dr. Paudel is right when she says that people target weak women of our society to exploit them. It is always very easy to blame a woman for practicing witchcraft and the mass can be swayed against her.
Most of the violent cases of witchcraft have been reported from Mahotari, Dhanusa, and Sarlahi. Perhaps many people don’t know about a temple called Son Mai Temple. It lies in Jaleswor district headquarters of Mahotrari. Local people say that every year witches and spirits converge here in a large number. This is a kind of annual get-together of all witches and spirits. The local authority must restrict to organize such practice based on superstition.
In fact ignorance, superstition, illiteracy, and poverty are responsible to encourage the cases of witchcrafts against women at large, but at the same time weak enforcement of law is also responsible for spreading violence against women. To deal with such cases efficiently, the country should have stringent laws against the perpetrators. Strict implementation of the law is even more important. If the perpetrators are dealt with strict manner others would think twice before taking any action against the poor women. The woman empowerment is not possible unless violence against them is completely eradicated from our society.
Nepalese women are still suffering from several discriminatory practices. They are tortured, harassed, dragged, raped and sometimes even beaten to death on various charges one being the witchcraft. Although the law has guaranteed them equal rights, such laws are only limited in the book.
Our media is replete with the news of women beaten up for practicing witchcraft. There are many villages in the country where the light of education has not reached and the people are under the impression of superstition. Quite often old, weak and single women are targeted and accused of practicing witchcraft. Such women are unable to defend themselves and become an easy object to be tortured by the
villagers. Sometimes the alleged witches are forced to eat or forcefully fed human excreta. On many occasions, the angry mob turned violent and took the lives of the victims. Now and then media report such embarrassing news. It highlights the gravity of the problem that demands urgent action without further delay.
In a recent past, Suk Bahadur Saru, 51, a local resident of Mityal VDC in Palpa district was accused of practicing witchcraft and troubling local people and their livestock. The local village court did also confirm his crime. Then what! The crowd lynched the man to death. Later, Suk Bahadur Saru’s body was thrown from a cliff to conceal the crime.
In another incident Dik Bahadur Bhujel of Karmaiya VDC, Sarlahi, killed Goma Devi Singdali, 70, and Ratna Maya Subedi, 60. He killed them with a large knife accusing them of causing stomach pain that lasted for three weeks. It sounds ridiculous but it is true.
Yet another shocking incident took place in 2001 in Simardahi where then VDC chiarman Nawal Kishor Sahani hired Ram Kripal Pandit (Indian national) and asked him to identify witches in his village. For the purpose, Sahani decreed all village women to assemble at one place for the Witch Identification Parade. Meanwhile, some clever villagers smelled rat with Sahani’s intention. They stood against Sahnai and asked him to release their wives or they would inform the police. Hence, the idea of parading women for the identification of witches was dropped.
Even in Kathmandu, the capital city, such incident takes place time and again.
Such inhuman activities are of course the result of illiteracy, superstition and poverty. On top, weak implementation of law is also responsible to a great deal. Had these perpetrators afraid of the legal punishment, they would have never executed such a heinous act against women.
It has already been explained by several psychologists that ghosts and spirit do exits only in the weak minds. They have no existence in real life. Dr Biswombandhu Sharma, Nepal’s leading psychologist, has said that only those people who are mentally weak do believe in the spirits and ghosts. Such stuff is the creation of a weak mind. A healthy brain is strong and doesn’t come under any such influence. "Many times it happens with the people when they are not ready to accept bad happenings with them. They simply blame others for their misfortunes. This give birth to superstitions" added Sharma.
Let’s not forget that if a person’s body becomes dysfunctional, for this, nothing else but only his body is responsible. Such physical ailments, if someone claims to treat through a litany of spells, it is nothing but only superstition. The truth is that all physical troubles need medical treatment to get rid of them. There are some people involved in some kind of shamanic practice. They take the advantage of gullible people and make them believe that a witch or a spirit is behind their miseries. In a country like Nepal where unemployment is so high, these illiterate shamans find it an effortless way to make a living.
Normally, it is experienced that mental related illness mostly attacks those women who are physically and mentally weaker. Hence, at times we see some women exhibiting strange behaviours beyond one’s comprehension. For this reason if any women undergoes through such hysteria or convulsion, it is nothing but a kind of mental illness. Whenever a symptom of such illness is seen in any woman, the best thing is to take her to the psychologist. A regular treatment and family support can soon make her strong enough to fight back the weaknesses.
Dr. Arati Poudel, working at the western region Gandaki Hospital, Pokhara, presently in Oman says, "If there is any secret education like Boksi Vidhya then why only women but many men would have learnt the art so that they could settle scores against their enemies. The strange fact is that why only women are blamed for being a witch, but not a man. Its only answer is they are weak and helpless. And if she has been abandoned by her husband, she becomes even more vulnerable. Has media ever reported a single piece of news where a rich and influential woman has been accused of practicing witchcraft? The answer is a big No".
Dr. Paudel is right when she says that people target weak women of our society to exploit them. It is always very easy to blame a woman for practicing witchcraft and the mass can be swayed against her.
Most of the violent cases of witchcraft have been reported from Mahotari, Dhanusa, and Sarlahi. Perhaps many people don’t know about a temple called Son Mai Temple. It lies in Jaleswor district headquarters of Mahotrari. Local people say that every year witches and spirits converge here in a large number. This is a kind of annual get-together of all witches and spirits. The local authority must restrict to organize such practice based on superstition.
In fact ignorance, superstition, illiteracy, and poverty are responsible to encourage the cases of witchcrafts against women at large, but at the same time weak enforcement of law is also responsible for spreading violence against women. To deal with such cases efficiently, the country should have stringent laws against the perpetrators. Strict implementation of the law is even more important. If the perpetrators are dealt with strict manner others would think twice before taking any action against the poor women. The woman empowerment is not possible unless violence against them is completely eradicated from our society.
(This article was published in The Rising Nepal)
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