Adjudicating Fear of Witchcraft Claims in Refugee Law

Abstract

In refugee applications involving witchcraft‐related violence (WRV), those accused of witchcraft are largely women, and those fearing witchcraft are more often men. This is one of two interrelated articles reporting on cases where claimants feared harm from witchcraft or occult practices. It argues that WRV is a manifestation of gender‐related harm, one which exposes major failings in the application of refugee jurisprudence. Systemic inattention to the meaning and application of the Convention ground of religion, combined with gender insensitivity in analysis, meant that claims were frequently reconfigured by decision makers as personal grudges. The fear of witchcraft cases pose an acute ontological challenge to refugee status determination, as the claimed harm falls outside what is understood to be objective, verifiable, or Convention‐related. Male applicants struggled to make their claims comprehensible as a result of the feminized and ‘irrational’ characterization of witchcraft fears and beliefs.

Witchcraft Accusations as Gendered Persecution in Refugee Law

“…In a second-related article, we address cases where mostly male applicants claimed protection on the basis that they feared harm from sorcerers or witches, or from unknown assailants through the medium of witchcraft (Millbank and Vogl, 2018). Those cases, although sharing many common features with those discussed here concerning applicants accused of witchcraft, posed even more acute challenges in terms of the application of the religion ground, the framing of the PSG, analysis of the objective element of the risk, and in credibility assessment.…”

“…Finally, we examine how WRV falls within the scope of both religious persecution and PSG as grounds for protection under the Refugee Convention . In the second article, concerning fear of witchcraft, we take up the issue of how WRV fits within the religion ground in more detail (Millbank and Vogl, 2018).…”

Claim Types in Canada’s Refugee Determination System

“…Sometimes, scholars attempt to be more comprehensive by reviewing all published cases involving a particular type of claim. For example, a scholar may identify all published cases that mention gender-based violence to offer an account of how the refugee determination process deals with these sorts of claims (Arbel, 2013;MacIntosh, 2009;Millbank & Vogl, 2018).…”

Reactions to and explanations for the birth of a baby with albinism: a qualitative study in Busoga, Uganda

“…A recent scoping review highlights the multiple cultural and spiritual meanings that run alongside biomedical explanations attached to albinism. 10 The umbrella terms ‘witchcraft and sorcery’ encompass beliefs and practices around supernatural powers 11 that are integral to daily living in many regions 12 :…”

“…Witchcraft cannot be understood within binary dimensions such as good and evil—these practices and beliefs do not always lead to harm 11 and can coexist with primary affiliations to world religions of Christianity and Islam. 14…”