Cultural and psychological factors (part 2/4)

Muti (also spelt Muthi) is a term for traditional medicine in southern Africa. The word Muti is derived from the Zulu word for tree, of which the root is -thi. African traditional medicine makes use of various natural products, many of which are derived from trees. For this reason, medicine generally is known as Muti, but it is also applied to formulations used in traditional medical dispensing (Ashforth, 2005).

As part of Muti practices, some witchdoctors make use of the so-called ‘medicine murder’ or ‘Muti murder’, where body parts are removed from the bodies of living persons. The intention is not to kill the victims as such, but it is expected that they will die due to the damage inflicted (Ashforth, 2005). Muti-murder is difficult to describe concisely, as it has changed over time, involving an ever-greater variety of perpetrator, victim, method and motive. In the interviews conducted as part of this research project, Muti using body parts is used widely and for many purposes.

Ashforth (2005) defines Muti as a substance fabricated with parts from plants, animals or minerals by an expert person possessing secret knowledge to achieve healing or witchcraft substances. He mentions that both Healers and witches use supernatural forces, but they use it for different ends. He says that witchcraft is considered the act of malicious persons who use harmful substances (poison) and that TH administer aid to patients, and almost always dispense substances (medicine), but both substances are known generically as Muti. He further states that witches using Muti are said to be able to cause every disease and misfortune and a number of Healers claim to be able to cure every disease (including AIDS) and to remedy every misfortune. This is supported by an interview with a Traditional Healer in Nampula, Mozambique, a member of AMETRAMO, “AIDS does have a cure […] It is probable that, mentally a Traditional Healer can cure AIDS according to his or her information”. However, another informant, also a member of the same organisation, but from Beira, stated “Who can heal someone with AIDS in this world? Nobody! Until today there is no medicine”.

Ashforth’s report mentions that Muti substances can enter the body through the mouth, lungs, skin, sexual intercourse and anus, thus anyone who eats, drinks, breathes or puts the body in contact with other persons or substances needs to be careful. Also Muti is said to work over long distances, without needing any direct contact between witch and victim and can even work through the medium of a dream (Ashforth 2005). Muti has a strong hold on many, as one informant in Mozambique stated “People have a deep belief in it”. Another informant in South Africa stated “It is the belief that you must have Muti for the business to work. The sad part is that they no longer use Muti as we knew it, but body parts”. This belief is further confirmed by other informants from South Africa “It is working because some people who are associated with the use of the parts are untouchable”, “People believe body parts can be utilized as Muti to call customers or to attract customers to buy more in their businesses”.

Cultural and psychological factors (part 1/4)

Historically, the peoples of southern Africa have used Traditional Healers (TH) to aid them in terms of health and to help them improve their life situation in various ways. Access to Government health services and ‘Western’ medicine remains low in many areas, and the use of TH is widespread and for many it remains a 1st choice. It has been documented that TH have developed many remedies using herbs and plants which alleviate their patients’ problems, although it is often dismissed by Western medicine. WHO challenges this, and calls for an integration of traditional medicine into the national health care system and also wants to promote the proper use of traditional medicine by developing and providing international standards, technical guidelines and methodologies.

WHO defines traditional medicine as follows “Traditional medicine as including diverse health practices, approaches, knowledge and beliefs incorporating plant, animal, and/or mineral based medicines, spiritual therapies, manual techniques and exercises applied singularly or in combination to maintain well-being, as well as to treat, diagnose or prevent illness”.

As seen in the WHO definition of traditional medicine, the use of human body parts are not considered part of traditional medicine. Rather, the use of body parts can be considered witchcraft and a harmful traditional practice. Yet, in practice, the terms witchdoctor and Traditional Healer are sometimes used interchangeably. 'Witchcraft' typically refers to malevolent or harmful magic, and is often considered to be a cultural ideology (Klaniczay, 2006). Some informants in this research project made a clear distinction between TH and witchdoctors as seen in a previous post.

A New Research Project

Information on trafficking body parts has previously been based almost entirely on hearsay and has been easy for both Governments and Civil Society to claim it either does not occur or is so infrequent it does not merit any response or attention. The findings in the report however, show that regular mutilations occur both in South Africa and Mozambique and body parts are forcibly removed from children and adults causing death or severe disability. Throughout the report, informants share personal experiences which confirm that body parts are taken across the border between South Africa and Mozambique. Through numerous accounts, both hearsay and firsthand, from Civil Society and Government institutions, the following questions are answered:

• What is the incidence and prevalence of trafficking body parts in South Africa and Mozambique?
• What are the macro (socio-economic, cultural, political, historical), interpersonal and individual factors that lead to trafficking body parts?
• What policies and programmes are in place to counter trafficking body parts?
• How can Civil Society and Governments use this information to improve their programmes?

The report documents that body parts are frequently trafficked in South Africa and Mozambique and so-called witchdoctors, usually through a third party, actively seek human body parts from live victims to be used in their medicine. The research found that it is a commonly held belief in South Africa and Mozambique that traditional medicine, when made with body parts, is stronger and more powerful.

The report highlights that the policies and programmes in place to counter trafficking body parts are practically nonexistent. The limited policies that could be used to counter this activity are out of date and not generally enforced.

The report draws attention to the lack of an internationally recognised definition of trafficking body parts and highlights that without such a definition, any attempt to counter this activity

will be impaired and these Human Rights violations will continue unabated.

Currently a second project is underway which aims, through workshops and focus groups, to reduce the demand through awareness raising activities within the affected communities and the supply, through initiatives with Traditional Healers associations, Border Officials and Governments. The objectives include carrying on with research, raising awareness, civic education, collecting and monitoring information and data on trafficking body parts, providing support for victims, witnesses and communities affected by the problem.

An important aspect of the project community involvement. The project will focus on working with communities towards a solution for reducing the supply and demand of body parts and it is essential that the behavior change comes from within the community. It is hoped that the communities will also feel valued as their ideas will implemented and they will be able to take ownership of both the problem and the solution.

Supply and Demand

The research performed by the Mozambican Human Rights League showed that there was a link between Muti and business, in other words, trafficking body parts is part of the supply and demand business of Muti. These Muti practices that are prevalent in South Africa and Mozambique are a cultural belief that body parts will make the medicine more effective and that it can solve any problem, ranging from poverty to health issues. The research interviews showed that so-called witchdoctors have a firm belief themselves that human body parts are needed for strong Muti. Witchdoctors, usually through a third party, actively seek human body parts from live victims.

Also, from the results of this research it seemed that, when linking Mozambique and South Africa, the movement of body parts was always from Mozambique to South Africa, which means that Mozambique acts as a supplier and South Africa as a recipient. A woman working as a stall holder on the South African side of the border said “I saw a human head on top of some vegetables that were inside those big bags they use to carry goods […] It was the head of a child […] someone was trying to take the head from Mozambique to South Africa”. There was also the account of an “old lady” who was attacked and beheaded in Mozambique. The head was found in “Tsatsimbe River where they crushed the head to remove the brain” which was said to have been taken to South Africa. The interviewer heard 3 separate firsthand accounts of this incident, from a Policeman, a Community Member and a Neighbourhood Secretary. And, finally, an informant confirmed that the three cases that she reported were about body parts being moved from Mozambique to South Africa.

There is no internationally recognised definition for Trafficking Body Parts

(Adapted from Literature Review on Trafficking Body parts by Mozambican Human Rights League)

Trafficking in human organs and body parts is mentioned in a number of documents. However, the majority of documents only consider trafficking of persons for the purpose of organ removal, rather than trafficking human body parts.

During the search for a definition, it was found that a comprehensive and internationally definition for Trafficking Body Parts (TBP) does not exist.

The UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementing the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (Palermo Protocol, 2000) provides the first internationally agreed upon definition of trafficking in persons:

(a) “Trafficking in persons” shall mean the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. (Article 3)

According to the Palermo Protocol, exploitation may include: sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery or servitude, the removal of organs.

TBP alone, separate from the victim, is not addressed in the UN Palermo Protocol. This was confirmed during the UN Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking forum, Vienna, February 2008: “The trafficking of organs alone, separate from the donor, is not addressed by the Protocol, to constitute the crime of trafficking in persons for the purposes of organ removal, the actual person has to be transported for the purpose of removing their organs”.

The finding that there is no internationally recognized definition of TBP is supported by the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice: “A global comparison of trafficking in human organs and tissues is constrained by the lack of a uniform definition and the absence of consistent statistics and criminal reports”.

It is clear that there has been a long standing assumption that TBP relates only to transplants and therefore, generally speaking, the person would need to be trafficked for the purpose of removing the body part. It appears that the concept of using body parts for purposes other than transplants has not been considered when assessing the need for a definition.

Trafficking is the act of moving and trading something illegal. As being in possession of body parts for trade is considered illegal, this report argues that the movement of a body part for the purpose of sale or commercial transaction is trafficking body parts.

The 2008 research by the Mozambican Human Rights League, suggests the following:

Transportation or movement of a body part, either across a border or within a country for the purpose of sale or commercial transaction is considered trafficking body parts.

What is the difference between a traditional healer and a witchdoctor?

A group interview was conducted in Nampula with AMETRAMO (Traditional Healers’ Association of Mozambique). According to these interviewed Traditional Healers, a “witchdoctor is the one who does the evil”, they “act by envy and vengeance, creating inexplicable diseases to people until these lose their life.” AMETRAMO called them “second-rate” Traditional Healers because “they do not apply their knowledge of traditional healing as they should, in contrast with the first-rate Traditional Healers that investigate and deepen their knowledge to do good.” According to AMETRAMO, the witchdoctors “can incite people to commit murders as a means of making them rich”. They stated that “truthful Traditional Healers do not need to do treatments with human organs” and that the ones who do that “are crooks, who are not Traditional Healers.” The Traditional Healers said that there are treatments performed by witchdoctors using human body parts that they could do without using the body parts, but using the “strength of the spirits and God, without needing to kill anyone, that is done with the help of the roots.”

AMETRAMO members in Nampula said that even though they are incorrectly accused of using treatments with body parts they are “against the witchdoctors”.

SABC3 programme exposes sale of body parts

This is an award-winning SABC3 programme Special Assignment “Strong Medicine” by Journeyman Pictures, about corrupt inyangas* who claimed to be selling human organs in Johannesburg.

The investigation showed networks trafficking in human body parts in contravention of the Human Tissues Act. The body parts were sold to people desperate for cures for illness and financial good luck.

A corrupt inyanga was exposed operating from under a bridge in Eloff Street Extension, selling what were believed to be human body parts. The same man is also shown introducing a middleman at the Faraday taxi rank, who was also trying to sell human body parts.

Levi Masebe, who works at a mortuary at Medunsa in North West province, is also exposed after he sold two human right hands for R4,000 to the journalists.

The programme also tells the case of a baby girl who was killed by her own father, a self-appointed healer, who killed her in front of her mother, who said: "He took us to a secluded spot... where he beheaded her and chopped (off) her limbs and removed her intestines and then wrapped them in a plastic bag. He poured her blood into a calabash and carried them all home."

*Inyanga: a person who uses muti to cause harm, damage, suffering, bad luck, cure diseases, protect from evil spirits and uses mixtures shells, coins, bones, etc. to foretell the future of people, identify witches, perform spells for good and or evil purposes (Mpumalanga Witchcraft Suppression Bill, 2007—draft version).

Training Workshop

A 3 day training workshop has started yesterday for the Mozambican researchers who will be working in our new project. It will help to improve the researchers' capacity to interview key informants and perform workshops.

Suspected Muti Killing

(Article from:The Phoenix and Verulam Sun Vol.7 No.30 – 30 July 2009. South Africa)

During the Human Rights League research (2008), male genitalia were found to be the body parts mentioned most during the interviews.

The interviewed Police officers stated that there are several cases of bodies being found missing body parts, however according to these informants, the parts are never found “But there are lots of cases in which the human organs are extracted but never found [...] We find many times bodies without organs or body parts” (MZ_Na_GI_2).

The informants interviewed in this research, when giving an example of an incident where body parts had either been taken or found, were asked what they thought the body part would be used for. Of the 62 informants who chose to answer this question, 93% believed they were either to be sold or used for activities relating to witchcraft and Muti. The objective of using body parts in the so-called ‘Muti murder’ is to create powerful traditional medicine based partly on human body parts. Traditional medicine has a wide range of purposes, for instance to heal illnesses, aid economic advancement or hurt enemies.

As part of Muti practices, some witchdoctors make use of the so-called ‘medicine murder’ or ‘Muti murder’, where body parts are removed from the bodies of living persons. The intention is not to kill the victims as such, but it is expected that they will die due to the damage inflicted (Ashforth, 2005). It is a deep founded belief of the witchdoctors that the body parts are necessary for the Muti to work and it is required that the victims are dismembered while they are still alive. The screams of the victims are believed to make the medicine more powerful by waking the spirits and empowering them, thus resulting in victims being mutilated alive (Griffin et al 2004, Labuschagne 2004). This research found some accounts where the victim was alive when the body parts were extracted, however a number of victims mentioned in this research were murdered and the body parts were removed post-mortem. An interviewed Doctor in Mozambique stated “The genital was removed with a very precise cut, or probably two cuts, one from each side removing the genitals. And the cuts were made after the person was dead […] no sign of bleeding. It means she was dead when the injuries were done” (MZ_MC_I_2).

"Harsh Sentence for Muti-killer", The Star, issue 264, 14 August 2009, South Africa

During our 2008 research on Trafficking Body Parts in Mozambique and South Africa, one of our informers said witchdoctors “can incite people to commit murders as a means of making them rich”. Other informers and Labuschagne (2004) believe the witchdoctor will not himself engage in ritual murders or killings, but will send a third party to do it. One of the interviewees stated “I do not think the healer himself will go out to kill. Instead some will send people (...) and promise them a lot of money on completion of the work.”

Further, it became clear during the research that many would cover up for the witchdoctors out of fear. One of the informers stated “someone knows them (the witchdoctors, ed.), but is not saying anything”. Another stated “It is all silenced. People are afraid to talk”. During an interview, an informant said: the “Sangoma (Traditional Healer, ed.) that lives in our neighbourhood was arrested because the Police found the body parts in his house”. After that the interviewer was informed that the Sangoma was later released from jail and is still practicing in the community.

Why a blog about Trafficking Body Parts?

If you Google “Trafficking Body Parts”, the results that will most likely appear are about transplants or use of organs and body parts for medical purposes. However, a research conducted in 2008 by the Mozambican Human Rights League, has established that Trafficking Body Parts occurs regularly both within Mozambique and across the border to South Africa. The research found that none of the 72 accounts of issues relating to trafficking body parts could possibly have resulted in a transplant.

The report shows that so-called witchdoctors actively seek human body parts (usually through a third party) from live victims to be used in their medicine as it is a commonly held belief that traditional medicine, when made with body parts, is stronger and more powerful.

To read the full research project report (2008) in English click here.

Para ler o relatório completo do projecto de pesquisa (2008), carregue aqui.

On following posts, we will be giving more information about this issue.