Case file · Witch trials
Cameroon's courts convict witches
From about 1980, state courts in Cameroon's East Province began convicting people of witchcraft under Article 251 of the 1967 Penal Code, often on the testimony of traditional healers (nganga).
1980 CE · 4.58, 13.68 · status: official
The account
Anthropologists Peter Geschiere and Cyprian Fisiy documented the trials, which showed that witchcraft (djambe among the Maka) was part of modern politics and state life rather than a fading tradition. The plotted point is Bertoua.
The sceptical view
Convictions rested on accusations and healers' divination; human-rights groups criticise laws that make witchcraft a crime.