Women slain over sorcery fears

[Morrigan_Dubh]

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (Reuters) -- Four Papua New Guinea women, believed by fellow villagers to have used sorcery to cause a fatal road crash, were tortured with hot metal rods to confess, then murdered and buried standing up in a pit, said police.

The National newspaper said on Wednesday that police had only just uncovered the grisly murders, which occurred last October near the town of Goroka in the jungle-clad highlands some 400 kilometers (250 miles) north of the capital, Port Moresby.

Black magic is widespread in the South Pacific nation where most of the 5.1 million population live subsistence lives. Women suspected of being witches are often hung or burned to death.

Local police commander Chief Inspector David Seine told the newspaper that people in the village of Kamex accused the four women of sorcery after a road crash killed three prison officers.

The women were reportedly tortured into admission by being stabbed with hot metal rods, Seine said.

It appeared the women were blindfolded with thick sticky tape strapped across their faces and mouths and their hands had been tied before they were murdered, he said.

Seine said the women were buried in an old narrow toilet pit in the standing position. The pit was then covered with soil and two old vehicle tires placed on the top.

"They planted a banana tree on top of the pit with fresh grass making it difficult for anyone to discover the site, but police got to it with the help of some elders from the village," he said.

[Clockwork]

Shameful superstitions of man... *shakes head*

[asta_tintora]

Hm, I wonder if they practice such things to bump off old relatives too.

Isn't there an old custom in that area that if the person believes thay are cursed by a witch they have to go and bury a stone in a field somwhere?

...I forget if it leeches off the supposed "curse" or if the sorcerer has to find the stone.

[HumanePain]

Proof that ignorance is dangerous.

[MotherofMercies]

Originally Posted by asta_tintora

Hm, I wonder if they practice such things to bump off old relatives too.

Isn't there an old custom in that area that if the person believes thay are cursed by a witch they have to go and bury a stone in a field somwhere?

...I forget if it leeches off the supposed "curse" or if the sorcerer has to find the stone.

Some tribes still practise cannibalism there. If there is a sudden death in the family, it is caused by the spirit that has possessed a family member. That family member then has to be eaten to rid of this spirit. I'm very vague on the subject.

[c130]

They'll grow out of it eventually. We did.

[killer_asian_Dax]

I'm not gonna judge as our cultures are so different, but I wonder if there will ever come a time in the evolution of ancient cultures such as theirs where they will become less superstitious and quick to blame.

[DarkHeartedDemoness]

Actually, the Bible says this is ok...

Exodus 22:18- "thou shalt not suffer a female witch to live".

Not that I think Christians did this, or even that this law is still observed by that religion... It's just that stuff like this isn't so far removed from cultures many of our friends, families, and loved ones participate in.

[asta_tintora]

I thought it was in the King James version of the bible that they changed that verse over...

[Morrigan_Dubh]

Originally Posted by c130

They'll grow out of it eventually. We did.

So you believe that "developing" cultures are behind "developed" nations and that they are on the same path as us?
Have you heard of the theory that so-called developing nations exist only because us "developed" countries are living off the back of these less developed countries? That they are "behind" us because we are, in actual fact, stepping on their heads to get to the top? The theory states that we wouldn't be as developed as we are if we didn't have these underdeveloped countries to use as props.
It is really an theory of economics, but I think it can be applied to moral/cultural practices also...

[HumanePain]

Originally Posted by Morrigan_Dubh

So you believe that "developing" cultures are behind "developed" nations and that they are on the same path as us?
Have you heard of the theory that so-called developing nations exist only because us "developed" countries are living off the back of these less developed countries? That they are "behind" us because we are, in actual fact, stepping on their heads to get to the top? The theory states that we wouldn't be as developed as we are if we didn't have these underdeveloped countries to use as props.
It is really an theory of economics, but I think it can be applied to moral/cultural practices also...

Hmmm, well, to c130's point, take China as an example: yes, the West exploited (and still does) the cheap labor, but China is quickly becoming a superpower that will rival the United States. There is no way the U.S. will be able to continue to "step on their heads" and keep them down, as they are developing despite the West.

[OCD Insomnia]

That's horrible. Things like these happen all of the time yet everyone does nothing...It stings to think that's really how bad humanity is.

[MotherofMercies]

Originally Posted by HumanePain

Hmmm, well, to c130's point, take China as an example: yes, the West exploited (and still does) the cheap labor, but China is quickly becoming a superpower that will rival the United States. There is no way the U.S. will be able to continue to "step on their heads" and keep them down, as they are developing despite the West.

Very true. Give them a few more years. Pity about the government though.

[Morrigan_Dubh]

And the air, water, earth, flora, and fauna of China It's a pity development = death to the environment...