By Amadou Manjang
Victims of former President Yahya Jammeh’s notorious 2008–09 witch-hunt campaign are calling for the criminalisation of witchcraft accusations and public declarations of their innocence as key steps toward justice and reconciliation, a new academic study has revealed.
“Participants made a range of suggestions for reconciliation, including public declarations of innocence, making witchcraft accusations illegal, and both external and community-led interventions to tackle stigma,” the researchers stated.
The study, published in the Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, found that nearly all respondents—98 percent—agreed that witchcraft accusations should be made illegal. Additionally, 96 percent believe those responsible for the campaign should not hold positions of power, and 95 percent say they should face punishment.
The study was conducted by W. Mick L. Finlay, Blerina Kellezi, Priscilla Yagu Ciesay, Fatou Kantara, Ssa Njie, Musa Sannoh, Hugo Lambie, and Tadeusz Jones.
In 2008 and 2009, Jammeh launched a campaign of witch-hunts in the West Coast and North Bank Regions, targeting predominantly poor and elderly men and women. The operation involved groups of alleged ‘witch-hunters’ who forcibly abducted hundreds, forcing them to drink hallucinogenic concoctions. The victims suffered torture, beatings, sexual violence, and public humiliation. The Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) found that at least 41 people died as a result of these actions.
More than a decade later, the study reports that the victims continue to suffer the lasting effects of trauma and social stigma. “There were many reports of victims being avoided by others, not being visited, and not being able to attend the ceremonies of other families,” the study found.
It also documented the impact on families of victims, noting “significant courtesy stigma” wherein entire households became ostracised. “People would avoid the family compound of a victim, thus affecting the whole family’s social lives and connection with others. The consequences for the family also included how the family image became ‘tainted’, meaning that other family members were also viewed with suspicion,” the researchers said.
Victims’ families experienced bullying, social exclusion, and the loss of educational and social opportunities. Entire communities, the study concluded, were torn apart by the campaign and remain divided today.
Importantly, the researchers noted that these divisions increasingly follow ethnic or tribal lines, deepening community rifts. The findings have reignited calls for legal reforms, reparations, and strong public measures to restore the dignity of those victimised by the witch-hunts.
