Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay by Anton Lutz In my previous blog post, The Sanguma Story, we took a first look at one of the most interesting SARV words – sanguma. We learned that the word sanguma comes from the Monumbo word /tsangumo/ and that this word’s original meaning had to do with physical […]
by Anton Lutz I find it very hard to talk about Sorcery Accusation Related Violence (SARV).. Maybe you do too. It is hard enough to think about it, but it is even harder to talk and write about it. Why is this? It comes down to three reasons: We see the world very differently. We […]
by Anton Lutz Words matter In the last blog post, we spoke briefly about how the way we use our words matters a great deal when it comes to understanding and communicating about Sorcery Accusation Related Violence (SARV). Unless we know what our words mean, we can easily misunderstand one another. Today we will take […]
by Anton Lutz This is the first blog in a series where our guest blogger for the coming weeks, Anton Lutz, will discuss with you his thoughts about the problem of Sorcery Accusation Related Violence (SARV) in PNG and what can be done to overcome it. Please keep returning to our site for more blog […]
Kendyl Bailey, a student journalist from QUT recently wrote this piece on Bougainville, sorcery and peace Australia. Revered as the land of a ‘fair go’ and mateship; home of the humble barbeque. Though things more sinister transpire in our country’s borders (the latest calamity: should a much-loved Sri Lankan family be removed from detention and […]
Sanguma, a specific form of witchcraft belief, is widely viewed as spreading to Enga in the past eight years or so. What may be the appropriate response is contested, and to support a particular approach, Enga often refer to the knowledge of those who have travelled or lived in other parts of the Highlands where […]
Miranda Forsyth conducted fieldwork on sorcery accusations and related violence in Lae city from 9 to 17 April 2018. She conducted 14 interviews with key stakeholders, two with survivors, and one observation of SARV awareness just outside of Lae, and generated the following preliminary observations/ findings. Frequency and trends of SARV It is very […]
The terms used to refer to different people and different practices in this area can be confusing. There is a risk of people not communicating properly when key terms have different meanings. Therefore we propose that we adopt the following definitions: Sorcery – means all types of practices that involve using supernatural means to cause harm. […]
This summary is prepared by Dr Miranda Forsyth, Australian National University, in order to clarify misunderstandings about the legal situation in relation to these issues. It has no official authorisation. Sorcery accusation related violence, including torture, is covered by a number of Criminal Code offences, including: Willful murder (s299) and Murder (s300) Grievous bodily […]
Two months ago, a horrifying video showing some Sorcery Accusation Related Violence in Papua New Guinea was released. The one-minute-long video, uploaded by Philip Gibbs and The Commission of Social Concerns of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, portrayed a situation where several men had stripped naked and tied four women […]
