The rise of child 'witchcraft' cases in the UK

Faith-based child abuse, centred on accusations of witchcraft and demonic possessions, has harmed thousands of children

Photo and illustration collage of a small child cowering in fear. Parts of the child's body are replaced with witchhunt imagery, and are pierced with huge pins
In the past year alone, 'witchcraft' has been linked to 2,180 social-services cases
(Image credit: Illustration by Julia Wytrazek / Getty Images)

Eight-year-old Victoria Climbié died in February 2000, after months of being starved, beaten, burnt and tied up by her great-aunt and guardian, who thought the little girl was possessed by evil spirits.

It was, said doctors at the time, the most horrific case of child abuse they had seen. And it included an exorcism, after her "evil guardian" convinced a preacher the girl's injuries meant she was "possessed by demons," said The Mirror.

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'Scapegoated' children

Climbié's murder catapulted faith-based abuse into the national spotlight, and led to a radical overhaul of child-protection laws. But it remains a "dark reality" across the UK, said Premier Christian News.

In the past year alone, witchcraft, also known as "juju" or "djin" or "jin", has been linked to 2,180 social-services cases.

Many accused children are "scapegoated for causing health and financial misfortunes" to those around them, said The Guardian. And exorcism, to cast out the "evil spirits" within them, is often seen as the solution.

'Flying around at night'

The "Kindoki" of the film's title is a word used to describe witchcraft that is linked to "acts of child abandonment and ritual abuse" in both the UK and overseas, said The Mirror. The film tells the story of Mardoche Yembi, now 33, who was accused of witchcraft as a boy.

Sent to the UK from the Democratic Republic of Congo after his mother died, Yembi was living with relatives in London, when, at the age of 11, he was accused by them of "killing his mother, flying around at night, damaging people," said the paper. Told he was possessed with a "demon spirit," he endured "two years of exorcisms".

The alarm was eventually sounded, "his case marked as abuse", and Yembi "found relief" after being placed with a foster mother, said Premier Christian News. Now working in the care system, he raises awareness of this "hidden" abuse.

Social services "sometimes misinterpret the warning signs" of this kind of child abuse, the film's director, Penny Woolcock, told The Mirror. She hopes the film will "encourage discussion" around witchcraft accusations, and prevent "other children from suffering".

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Rebekah Evans joined The Week as newsletter editor in 2023 and has written on subjects ranging from Ukraine and Afghanistan to fast fashion and "brotox". She started her career at Reach plc, where she cut her teeth on news, before pivoting into personal finance at the height of the pandemic and cost-of-living crisis. Social affairs is another of her passions, and she has interviewed people from across the world and from all walks of life. Rebekah completed an NCTJ with the Press Association and has written for publications including The Guardian, The Week magazine, the Press Association and local newspapers.