a-6332 (ACC-NGA-6332)
Nach einer Recherche in unserer Länderdokumentation und im Internet können wir Ihnen zu oben genannter Fragestellung Materialien zur Verfügung stellen, die unter anderem folgende Informationen enthalten:
Allgemeine Informationen zu Geheimgesellschaften
Die Begriffe “Kult” und “Geheimgesellschaft” definiert das norwegische Herkunftsländerinformationszentrum Landinfo in dem Bericht zu seiner Fact-Finding Mission nach Abuja, Lagos und Benin City vom August 2006. Laut Landinfo seien Kulte und Geheimgesellschaften ein Phänomen, das hauptsächlich im Süden Nigerias vorkomme, dort aber in allen Gesellschaftsschichten zu finden sei:
“The term cult is very freely used in Nigeria, and may refer to any organised group of people where there is some sort of secrecy around the group members’ reasons to organise and/or modes of operations. The term also implies a religious dimension, generally linked to practice of juju. Organisations ranging from the famous Ogboni secret society via ethnically based vigilante groups to university fraternities are all referred to as cults in Nigerian media.
According to Bukhari Bello (NHRC), cults and secret organisations are common in the south of Nigeria, but considerably less so in the north. Tony Ojukwu (NHRC) stated that secret brotherhoods operate all the way up to elite levels of society, this view was supported by another Nigerian source. Here it must be stressed that it is widely believed in Nigeria (like elsewhere in the region) that people in power form secret networks where conspiracies and abuse of occult powers are a matter of routine:
‘In contemporary postcolonial West Africa, where the everyday suffering of the vast majority stands in stark contrast to the fantastic accumulation of the small elite, the tropes of sorcery, witchcraft and supernatural evil have provided a powerful way to express the inequalities of wealth. Representations of magic and the supernatural are not escapist fantasies but are believed by audiences to be part of the everyday world in which they live and rumors are rampant that behind material wealth lies magical production.’ (Larkin 2001)
Such beliefs also form the basis for a large number of locally produced films (so called Nollywood-films), that reach huge audiences in Nigeria, the neighbouring countries and the West African diaspora in Europe and elsewhere.” (Landinfo, August 2006, S. 19)
ACCORD beschreibt in seinem Länderbericht zu Nigeria vom August 2004 die Rolle und Funktion von Geheimgesellschaften in Nigeria:
„Geheimgesellschaften spielten schon lange vor dem Eintreffen der Europäer eine wichtige Rolle in den verschiedenen Gesellschaften des späteren Territoriums Nigeria. Sie übten sowohl gesellschaftliche als auch politische Macht aus. So waren beispielsweise die Morton-Williams beschriebenen Ogboni in Oyo Königsmacher und konnten den König auch absetzen (ACCORD 2002, S. 29). Das Kanadische Immigration and Refugee Board zitiert einen Artikel der Zeitung Post Express, dem zufolge auch heute zahlreiche Geheimgesellschaften existieren, beispielsweise die Ogboni unter den Yoruba, die Ekpe unter den Efiks oder die Poro unter den Mende (IRB 08. November 1999). Die Bedeutung dieser Geheimgesellschaften liegt darin, dass die Mitgliedschaft häufig den Zugang zu Ressourcen sichert und Bestandteil der sozialen Integration ist und damit über Überleben und Status der jeweiligen Familie bestimmt. Im Normalfall liegt keine Zwangsmitgliedschaft vor; jedoch kann erheblicher Druck von Seiten der Familie ausgehen aufgrund der damit im Zusammenhang stehenden Vorteile der Geheimgesellschaft beizutreten (ACCORD/UNHCR 2002, S. 166). Die Berichte zur sicheren internen Fluchtalternative sind insgesamt widersprüchlich. Wie die Bezeichnung „Geheimgesellschaft“ schon nahe legt, sind Informationen aus erster Hand sehr beschränkt. Diese Gesellschaften werden auch als geheime Kulte oder Geheimbünde bezeichnet.“ (ACCORD, August 2004, S. 57)
Auch in seinem – bereits älteren - Bericht zum 8. Europäischen Herkunftsländerseminar vom 28. November 2002 geht ACCORD Bezug nehmend auf den Vortrag vom Heinz Jockers vom Institut für Afrikastudien der Universität Hamburg auf Geheimgesellschaften in Nigeria ein. Jockers betont hier, dass sehr wenig über diese bekannt sei:
“Secret societies have earned their name with a reason. Very little is known about them, the most widely reported and studied being the Yoruba Ogboni society. It is hard to estimate the number of secret societies – they might be in the thousands. Some of them are linked to particular villages, some to ethnic communities and /or political groups. The ‘Reformed’ Ogboni Society’ is an association of politicians and influential people, distinct from the traditional Ogboni society.” (ACCORD, 28. November 2002, Absatz 2.7.1)
Verfolgung von Einzelpersonen durch Kulte / Geheimgesellschaften
In dem oben zitierten Bericht zum 8. Europäischen Herkunftsländerseminar vom 28. November 2002 gibt Jockers hier eine Schätzung zur Zahl der Geheimgesellschaften in Nigeria ab, beschreibt den Zweck von Mitgliedschaften in Geheimgesellschaften sowie deren Aufnahmemechanismen und setzt sich mit Fragen nach erzwungener Mitgliedschaft, dem Vorkommen von Menschenopfern bzw. Vergiftungen sowie potentieller Verfolgung durch Geheimgesellschaften auseinander:
[…]
Membership in a secret society (as well as in any other kind of society, club, or fraternity) may secure access to resources and social integration and is thus very important for the survival and social status of family. There is, however, usually no forced recruitment into secret societies, but pressure may be exerted on certain individuals to join because of the advantages of being part of a secret society. Neither would the societies accept anybody but would be inviting persons from a certain highly regarded families. It is also unlikely that there is a rule of automatic succession in a position (i.e. the son replacing the father) but more likely that those families who traditionally have had the authority to invite new members would choose the most suitable candidate. If this person should for some reason – because of his or her Christian belief – not want to join and if there is no other candidate from this particular family he or she might be ostracized and might also lose property or an inheritance but would not have to fear for his or her life.” (ACCORD, 28. November 2002, Absatz 2.7.1)
Weiters spricht Jockers davon, dass es durchaus sein könne, dass Geheimgesellschaften Mitglieder, welche unter dem Verdacht stehen würden, geheime Informationen verbreitet zu haben, auch außerhalb ihres Heimatbezirkes- ja sogar jenseits der Grenzen Nigerias verfolgen würden:
“Secret societies derive part of their power from a wide-spread belief in supernatural forces attributed to those societies. They derive loyalty from this fear. Leaving a secret society, however, would not necessarily provoke a violent reaction from the society. The most probable reason for persecution by a secret society would be divulging something which is considered to be secret. In this case, it would also be conceivable that the society, through their network of influence, follows someone outside his or her own district to another location in Nigeria, or even to Europe.” (ACCORD, 28. November 2002, Absatz 2.7.1.)
Stehen Kulte / Geheimgesellschaften in Verbindung mit staatlichen Institutionen? Staatlicher Schutz vor Verfolgung durch Kulte / Geheimgesellschaften
In seinem in der nigerianischen Zeitung Leadership veröffentlichten Meinungsartikel vom 17. August 2008 nimmt Chika Otuchikere zum Vorkommen von Voodoo-Praktiken unter nigerianischen PolitikerInnen Stellung und nennt zwei Beispiele:
“Until the recent incident where a man in charge of developing the plundered Niger Delta region was caught pants down in a voodoo's coven, I have always pondered a revelation which a political stalwart made before a Christian gathering. I still remember that Comrade Uche Chukwumerije, now a senator, was invited to that event which took place sometime in 2002. I can't recall other politicians at that event but the man who released that bombshell was Venatius Ikem, former publicity secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
According to Ikem, nobody can occupy any political office in this country unless that person had gone through blood-related ritual. Since that allegation was made, and since the man who said it was an insider, I presumed that he was saying the truth. I also believe that Senator Chukwumerije would remember that grave allegation and indictment against politicians, although when it was made he was still hibernating and waiting patiently for his time.
Somehow, that revelation has never been erased from my memory. When the Okija saga hit the nation like a thunderbolt, most Nigerians were repulsed to find out that occultism has a major stake in the lives of most of our politicians - to the extent that men, who during their inauguration into office would prefer to swear with the Bible or Quoran, still go, in the cover of night, to shrines to swear allegiance, not to their state or country but to the devil, their godfathers and occult groups.
Nigerians have been inundated with stories of how ritual murders and practices have become the order of the day. While the motive for some of these human rituals has not been made official, not a few Nigerians believe that they are perpetrated by men and women who are either seeking political office or in desperate search for big business. Unfortunately, most cases of ritual murder go unresolved just as most persons who are declared missing in our country are never found.
Only recently, the Abia State governor, Chief Theodore Orji, was accused of being a member of a cult group. It was partly for that reason that the state's election petition tribunal voided his election. True or not, it was another eye-opener to buttress the preponderance of these ugly realities on our landscape. Even though the embattled governor put up a spirited defence to deny the allegation, our politicians were exposed.
As if the above atrocities were not enough, the escapdes of the now suspended chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mr. Sam Edem, has become the last straw which not only broke the camel's back but practically killed the camel. He did not just contract witchdoctors, he used the money meant for the development of the Niger Delta region to enrich and empower sorcerers.
I am sure that both Edem and the voodoo man, Witchdoctor Perekabowei Ogah, did not tell us the entire story. For instance, they did not tell us how many lives went with the over N1 billion "invested" in the ritual, since the intention was to take lives. They did not also tell us how long they have been engaged in the act of taking the lives of people through this means. The much we were told was that the witchdoctor was an employee of the Bayelsa State government, and the former government of Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, gave him a Government House identity card.” (Leadership, 17. August 2008)
Über Aktionen der Polizei gegen Geheimgesellschaften informieren die nigerianischen Zeitungen Vanguard (9. August 2004) und Daily Champion (10. Oktober 2004). In beiden Artikeln geht es um den Entschluss der Polizei, nach den Ereignissen beim Schrein von Okija, verschärft gegen kultische Handlungen vorzugehen:
“The police authorities have ordered a clamp down on shrines and other fetish set-ups across the country which share similarities of operations with the recently discovered Ogwugwu shrine in Okija, Ihiala local government area of Anambra State. […]
Said one source: ‘The authorities also directed the Commissioner of Police in Anambra State to ensure that the recovered list of those that patronise the shrine is closely protected to avoid its disappearance while all the prominent names discovered on the list will be made public as soon as the police complete their investigations. Already, a list of such fetish shrines which the police have identified for clampdown is being compiled and so far includes Aiyelala shrine near Aiyetoro community in Ilaje Eseodo local government area of Ondo State, Somorika in Edo State and three others in Kogi, Cross River and Benue States.’” (Vanguard, 9. August 2004)
“Plugging in to the amply promoted uproar over the unholy practice, the police stepped forward and positioned itself as a mid day shrine buster of sorts. It promised to locate, storm and unmask all shrines and ritual grounds across the country, as a means, probably, of reducing the crime rate. A list of fetish shrines said to have been compiled by the police for inspection, in the wake of the Ogwugwu Okija shock findings included one Aiyelala shrine somewhere in Ondo State and one Somorika shrine in Edo state. For now however, the shrine busting expedition by the police is yet to go beyond the very point where it was declared - Okija. Hypocrisy reigns as much in Nigeria as corruption. Between what many people believe in or do in private and what they say, especially in the public, there is a chasm the explanation of which can only be located in dishonesty. Thus it was that the Okija shrine and whatever it represented were a source of wide public condemnation, but the cold-blooded murder of a young man in Oregun, Lagos for ritual purposes, barely two weeks after the eruption over Okija, has been a subject of denial.” (Daily Champion, 10. Oktober 2004)
Bezüglich der Frage des staatlichen Schutzes bei Bedrohung durch Geheimbünde stellt ACCORD in seinem Bericht zum 8. COI-Seminar vom 28. November 2002 fest, dass es sein könne, dass auch PolizeibeamtInnen Mitglieder von Geheimgesellschaften seien bzw. könne auch Korruption dazu führen, dass Ermittlungen in bestimmten Fällen fallengelassen würden:
“It is hard to tell whether the police or the courts would protect somebody who is being threatened by a secret society. The police officers or the court staff might or might not be members of that particular society. Contrary to the student varsities widespread in the universities, they would not openly engage in fighting but are believed to mostly use poison in order to punish somebody whose actions violate a taboo of the society. Given the corruption of the police, it might not be too hard to arrange for an investigation to be dropped in those cases.” (ACCORD, 28. November 2002, Absatz 2.7.1.)
Vorkommen von Menschenopfern
Einen detaillierten Überblick über Menschenopfer in Nigeria liefert ACCORD in seinem Länderbericht vom August 2004 unter Bezugnahme auf verschiedenen Quellen. Neben allgemeinen Informationen zu dem Phänomen geht ACCORD hierbei vor allem auf die Frage der (staatlichen) Verfolgung von RitualmörderInnen bzw. der Selbstjustiz seitens der BürgerInnen ein:
„7.3 Ritualmorde
7.3.1 Allgemeines
Die nigerianische sowie internationale Tagespresse berichten immer wieder von Ritualmorden (P.M. News 25. August 2004; Sydney Morning Herald 07. August 2004; AFP, 13. Januar 2004; Daily Champion 29. Juli 2003). Ende der 1990er Jahre wurde sogar ein Wiederanstieg der Zahl der Ritualmorde festgestellt (AllAfrica.com/Tempo 01. Dezember 1999; AllAfrica.com/Tempo, 14. Januar 2000). Diese Einschätzung wurde damals durch die Polizei von Lagos bestätigt (AllAfrica.com/P.M. News, 15. September 2000). Die Kriminalstatistik soll für Lagos allein 2 Ritualmorde wöchentlich verzeichnen (AllAfrica.com/P.M. News, 11. Januar 2000) Wie eine nigerianische Tageszeitung im Jahr 2000 berichtete, sah sich die Polizei daher gezwungen, für Lagos sogenannte no-go areas zu definieren, die vor allem in der Nacht zu meiden seien (AllAfrica.com/P.M. 06. Oktober 2000b).
Zur Verbreitung der Ritualmorde schrieb die Tageszeitung Post Express, dass diese zwar auch in anderen Landesteilen vorkämen, jedoch nicht mit vergleichbarer Häufigkeit wie in Lagos (AllAfrica.com/Post Express 18. September 2000).
Die Opfer von Ritualmorden werden zumeist entführt. Dies geschieht häufig unter Zuhilfenahme eines ‚hypnotisierenden Talismans’ durch die Entführer (AllAfrica.com/P.M. News 25. August 2000). Bei den Morden selbst werden häufig Körperteile, wie die Geschlechtsorgane, Augen oder Zunge von der Leiche abgetrennt. Köpfe werden fast immer abgeschlagen. Der übrige Körper wird schließlich irgendwo liegengelassen oder verbrannt beziehungsweise anders unkenntlich gemacht, um eine Identifizierung zu verhindern (AllAfrica.com/Tempo 01. Februar 1999; AllAfrica.com/P.M. News 11. Januar 2000; AllAfrica.com/P.M. News 27. März 2001). Wie die Polizei von Lagos zu bedenken gibt, steigt die Zahl der Ritualmorde während des Eleku Festivals (zwischen August und September) an (AllAfrica.com/P.M. News 15. September 2000).
Die durch Ritualmorde entfernten Körperteile spielen eine wichtige Rolle in einigen Vodoo-Praktiken. Sie sollen dazu in die Lage versetzen, rasch reich zu werden (AllAfrica.com/Tempo 28. September 2000).
Ein ehemaliger Kräuterhändler beschreibt die Funktion von Körperteilen und den Vorgang im Allgemeinen wie folgt: ‘…the function of the human parts is simply to appease the gods, adding that there could be lots of consequences if the gods are not continually appeased. He explained that the process of getting money through rituals varies with the type of occultic society the individual belongs and their housestyle. In some cases, it was gathered, the member is requested to bring his most beloved one. The blood of such a person would be sucked out entirely and mixed with hot drinks and other parts of the human body particularly the head, the eyes, the nose, the breasts in the case of a female victim and the private parts. All these are ground with other ingredients to produce a horrible concoction which are shared among members to drink. Before the drinking, some incantations are made to invoke or conjure up the spirit for appeasement. Each of the members is required to have a secret place in his house or elsewhere where the spirit will be depositing the money. This money is said to be always very tangible. Yet another method is for the male or female part to be carefully wrapped in either red or white cloth and decorated with feathers and other fetish components such as wool, threads, etc. The sponsor will then give it to the overall leader of the society who will show it to other members as an evidence of promise fulfilled. The wrapped object is often decorated further by the leader before giving it back to the member for keeps in a secret place. Sometimes, part of the private part is cut off and shared among the members to eat.’ (AllAfrica.com/Tempo 28. September 2000)
Erst kürzlich wurden 30 ‚witch doctors’ (‚Hexendoktoren’) in Anambra State von der Polizei verhaftet, nachdem 30 Leichen, welche auf Ritualmorde zurückgehen, in einem Wald gefunden worden waren (IRIN 05. August 2004).
Inwiefern Geheimkulte an Ritualmorden beteiligt sind, lässt sich nicht zweifelsfrei feststellen. Die Tageszeitung Vanguard berichtet jedenfalls von einem 13-jährigen Mädchen aus Maiduguri, Borno State, das als Mitglied eines geheimen Kultes an 48 Ritualmorden teilgenommen haben soll (AllAfrica.com/Vanguard 26. Juli 2001).
7.3.2 Verfolgung von Ritualmördern
Ob die Polizei stringent gegen Ritualmörder vorgeht, ist aus den vorliegenden Quellen nicht zu beantworten. Es liegen jedoch zahlreiche Berichte über die Verhaftung von Personen vor, die verdächtigt werden, Ritualmorde begangen oder geplant zu haben. Einzelne Verdächtige werden sich jedoch – wie in den meisten anderen Deliktfällen auch – durch Bestechung der Verfolgung entziehen können. P.M. News berichtet etwa von einem Verdächtigen, der an der Vergewaltigung und anschließenden Ermordung einer Frau beteiligt gewesen sein soll. Dieser wurde angeblich durch die Aushändigung von 25.000 Naira an die Polizei freigelassen (AllAfrica.com/P.M. News 25. August 2000). In einem anderen Artikel von P.M. News wird lamentiert, die Exekutivorgane wirkten angesichts der Morde machtlos. Die Polizei sei viele Male beschuldigt worden, gefährliche Kriminelle gegen Geld freizulassen (AllAfrica.com/P.M. News 06. Oktober 2000b).
Auch die Tageszeitung Post Express äußert sich dahingehend: “… like many other social vices, it (Ritualmorde, meine Anm.) has found a vacuum in the security lapses of the country” (AllAfrica.com/Post Express 25. Oktober 2000). Andererseits sind auch Polizeibeamte Ritualmorden zum Opfer gefallen (AllAfrica.com/P.M. News 15. September 2000).
Es gibt Vermutungen, dass auch Personen des gesellschaftlichen Lebens Ritualmorde veranlassen. So wurde beispielsweise ein Militäroberst diesbezüglich verdächtigt und von der Polizei dazu befragt (AllAfrica.com/P.M. News 06. Oktober 2000). In einem anderen Fall soll gegen einen Parlamentsabgeordneten von Bauchi State wegen eines Ritualmordes ermittelt worden sein (AllAfrica.com/This Day 10. Juli 2002; AllAfrica.com/Daily Trust 10. Juli 2002). Als es im Juli 2003 zur Verhaftung eines Verdächtigen kommt, in dessen Haus 25 menschliche Köpfe gefunden wurden, berichtet der mit dem Fall betraute Polizeibeamte, dass einflussreiche Personen, darunter auch Politiker, ihn unter Druck setzten, alle mit Ritualmorden in Zusammenhang stehenden Fälle fallenzulassen (AllAfrica.com/Daily Champion 29. Juli 2003).
Eine spezielle gesetzliche Handhabe existiert auf Bundesebene nicht. Ritualmorde fallen unter den Straftatbestand Mord, wie ein Vertreter der Polizei berichtet (AllAfrica.com/Post Express 25. Oktober 2000).
Anfang 2003 verhängt der nigerianische High Court das Todesurteil über 7 Personen, denen die Beteiligung an einem Ritualmord vorgeworfen wurde. Diese Gruppe, auch unter der Bezeichnung ‚Otokoto seven’ bekannt geworden, wurde für schuldig befunden, im Jahr 1996 den rituellen Mord an dem 11- jährigen Ikechukwu Okonkwo begangen zu haben. (AllAfrica.com/The News 10. Februar 2003).
7.3.3 Selbstjustiz bei Ritualmorden
Bürger gingen immer wieder in vermuteten Fällen von Ritualmorden zur Selbstjustiz über. Eine Gruppe von Jugendlichen setzte in Biu, Borno State, 5 Häuser eines Geschäftsmannes in Brand, der verdächtigt wurde, an Ritualmorden beteiligt gewesen zu sein (AllAfrica.com/Weekly Trust, 29. Oktober 2000). Eine vergleichbare Situation entstand Ende 2001 in Hadejia, Jigawa State, als eine wütende Gruppe das Haus eines des Ritualmordes verdächtigen traditionellen Heilers, zwei Gerichte und zwei Polizeistationen niederbrannten, weil offenbar nicht gegen den vermuteten Straftäter vorgegangen wurde (AllAfrica.com/This Day, 24. Dezember 2001). Erst nach diesem Aufstand reagierte die Polizei, indem sie nach 9 Personen in dieser Angelegenheit suchen ließ (AllAfrica.com/This Day 28. Dezember 2001). Ein Polizist, welcher nicht an einer erheblichen Bestechungssumme beteiligt wurde, alarmierte eine Gruppe Jugendlicher über die Straflosigkeit für den verdächtigten Geschäftsmann im Falle eines Ritualmordes an einer Frau in Umuneke, Imo State. Die Gruppe steckte daraufhin eine Polizeistation und das Haus eines Polizeibeamten in Brand (AllAfrica.com/Newswatch 21. Juli 2002).
Diese Form des Protests und der Selbstjustiz veranlasste die Regierung des Gliedstaates Ondo, sich an die Bevölkerung zu wenden und sie zur gesetzmäßigen Kooperation mit der Polizei aufzurufen ÖRK/ACCORD: Länderbericht Nigeria, August 2004 66 (AllAfrica.com/Vanguard 16. August 2002). Auch der Gouverneur von Delta State, Ibori, wandte sich kürzlich an Jugendliche, um sie davon abzuhalten, mutmaßliche Ritualmörder zu töten (AllAfrica.com/This Day 09. Juni 2004).“ (ACCORD, August 2004, S.63-66)
In dem Bericht zu seinem 8. Country of Origin Information Seminar vom November 2002 betont ACCORD Bezug nehmend auf den Nigeria-Experten Heinz Jockers, dass Menschenopfer für rituelle Zwecke in Nigeria wenn sie überhaupt vorkämen, extrem selten seien:
“Human sacrifices for ritual purposes or cannibalism happen extremely rarely, if at all. A case of cannibalism became known to the expert from the Institute of African Studies during a stay in Nigeria. The rationale behind such a ritual, he stated, lies in ensuring the oath of secrecy on a particular decision and unfailing loyalty to the group– no one would want to admit to have participated in an act of cannibalism. One widely reported case concerned a number of child kidnappings in Maiduguri, Borno State, where the children were sold to Igbo communities in the South for ritual purposes. It is also not uncommon to find human corpses with body parts missing but this might be as much due to a fear of burying someone alive as to traditional rituals.” (ACCORD, 28. November 2002, S.166-167)
Im Gegensatz dazu stellt das Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) unter Bezugnahme auf Medienquellen sowie ein Experteninterview in einer Anfragebeantwortung vom Juli 2005 fest, dass Ritualmorde in Nigeria weit verbreitet seien, in manchen Gegenden sogar epidemisches Ausmaß erreichen würden:
„Academics, human rights activists and media sources say that ritual murders are common throughout Nigeria (Associate Professor 12 July 2005; Post Express 25 Oct. 2000; Denmark Jan. 2005, 20; BBC 17 Mar. 2005; Christian Today 20 May 2004; AFP 20 Nov. 2000; UN 30 June 2005). The associate professor [vom IRB konsultierter, nicht namentlich genannter, Associate Professer und Vorsitzender des „Department of Anthropology at Franklin and Marshall College“, Anm. ACCORD] said that the attention given by the Nigerian press to the issue of ritual killings suggests that it is a phenomenon which is ‚fairly widespread from south to north, east to west [and that]…[t]here are some places where it is supposedly endemic (parts of the Igbo areas, Benin/Bendel State, wherever the government bureaucrats are located…)’ (12 July 2005).“ (IRB, 22. Juli 2005)
Ebenso bezeichnet BBC News in seinem Artikel vom 17. März 2005 Ritualmorde als weit verbreitet:
„According to the BBC's Yusuf Sarki Muhammad in Abuja, despite condemnation of traditional ritual killings, they are common across the country - in the Muslim north and the Christian south.“ (BBC, 17. März 2005)
Potentielle Opfer von Ritualmorden beschreibt das IRB (22. Juli 2005) – wieder in Anlehnung an den bereits zitierten Associate Professor des Franklin and Marshall College - folgendermaßen:
„[a]nyone is a potential victim, although the old are thought to be less valuable for ritual murder purposes than the very young and fertile. Youthful women are seen as probably victims; children are definitely seen as victims. There are a few, well-known "cases" where creative artists were supposedly killed because of their talents. I've suggested in my analyses of these rumors that the best potential victim is someone with a lot of personal potential-someone who has a lot of life to live, money to make, children to bear … (12 July 2005).“ (IRB, 22. Juli 2005)
TäterInnen fänden sich laut IRB (22. Juli 2005) in allen Gesellschaftsschichten:
“The associate professor said that there is much speculation regarding the main perpetrators behind the majority of ritual murders, but suspects that both the wealthy elites and the ‘poor, ignorant peasants’ profit from these practices (12 July 2005).
In a 28 February 2000 telephone interview with the Research Directorate, a Lagos-based lawyer and director of the civil rights group Constitutional Rights Project explained that ritual murders are not usually associated with any particular group. He said that ritual killings are perpetrated mainly by ‘native doctors who have been involved in this since time immemorial, mostly through traditional cultic practices that have nothing to do with modern-day cults’ (see also UN 30 June 2005). He added that those who perform ritual murders are individuals working for their own profit (Lawyer 28 Feb. 2000).
In an interview with representatives of the Danish Immigration Service and the British Home Office during their joint fact-finding mission to Nigeria, Muhammad Sani Usman, chief administration officer of the National Human Rights Commission (Nigeria), said that ritual killings are sometimes performed as an act of intimidation which may be related to local elections or control of people and money and which have also been linked to human trafficking (Denmark Jan. 2005, 11).
Media sources report that traditional healers use body parts to strengthen the power of charms used to cure ailments or protect their clients from misfortunes (BBC 17 Mar. 2005; ibid. 16 Oct. 2001). The associate professor suggests that there are those who ‘actually enact these supposed rituals in a desperate attempt to gain (more) wealth and power’ (12 July 2005). As part of an income generation scheme, people reportedly commit murders in order to sell victims' body parts to these traditional healers (Associate Professor 12 July 2005; BBC 17 Mar. 2005). British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) News reported that Jacob Wakfan, a 35-year old Nigerian man, confessed to murdering his friend in order to sell his body parts, namely the penis and tongue, for use in witchcraft rituals (17 Mar. 2005).
According to BBC News, Dr. Hendrick Scholtz, a South African pathologist who carried out the second of six post-mortem examinations (The Guardian 7 July 2004) on the torso of a five-year-old Nigerian boy found in the Thames River in September 2001, said that human sacrifices are performed for a small group of people seeking supernatural powers that they believe will help them succeed in areas such as business or politics (29 Jan. 2002). As a result of forensic tests, the British police determined that the boy was from Benin, Nigeria and was possibly smuggled to London by a human trafficking ring (The Guardian 7 July 2004; Sunday Times 3 Aug. 2003).” (IRB, 22. Juli 2005)
Über aktuelle Beispiele für rituelle Ermordungen wird in folgenden Artikeln nigerianischer Medien berichtet:
The News beschreibt in einem Artikel vom 9. August 2004 zahlreiche Fälle ritueller Ermordungen, die in den letzten 10 Jahren geschehen seien:
“Ritual killings in Nigeria are not exactly new. Most times, they are associated with the quest for quick money and as appeasement to local deities. When worked on by fetish priests, certain parts of the human body are believed to be capable of bringing limitless sums of money.
The most celebrated was the 1996 Otokoto saga which brought the development into national discourse. The incident, which occurred in Owerri, capital of Imo State, saw Innocent Ekeanyanwu beheading Ikechukwu Okoronkwo, an 11-year groundnut seller.
[…]
Beside the Okotoko episode, numerous other cases of ritual murder have been reported. In December 2001, a group of christians discovered 32 human skulls as a shrine in Neke, Isiuzo Local Government Area of Enugu State. The skulls were those of people who had been sacrificed to two of Neke's gods- Ezugu and Odo. The find was reported to the police who made arrests and prosecuted those arrested.
In August 2001, the body of an unidentified woman was found at Charity Bus Stop, along the Oshodi/Apapa Expressway. Her mutilated private parts and a missing leg provided hints that she was killed by ritualists. Within the same period, Lagosians were served a sequel when a beggar with a hunchback was found murdered in Ikeja. His hunchback had been excised. Also missing were his genitals and tongue.
On 11 April one Olabambo Louis left her home in Dopemu, Lagos, for an unknown destination. Days after, the police found her corpse near the University of Lagos. Again, the genital was gone.
In Sango Ota, a police officer attached to a plastic factory was abducted by armed men who raided the company.
Six days later, his body was found about 50 kilometers away in Sagamu. Vital organs like the private parts had been removed. Shortly after, one Maria Adeniyi, a labourer at a construction site, was summoned one morning by six men with whom she had always worked. Her duty that morning was to draw water for the men to mould blocks. But the men gang-raped and later strangled her on the way to the site.
She was later found without her breasts, head, heart and private parts in a make-shift grave.
In Abeokuta, a woman named Mosebolatan Lasisi contracted a labourer to behead her 10-year old daughter Risiwa. With a N25,000 price tag, Risiwa's head was chopped off while she was sweeping her mother's sitting room. The killer's secret was, however, revealed when an unexpected visitor walked in on the dastardly act.
In Oshogbo, Osun State, people believed to be agents of herbalists who specialized in moneymaking rituals were apprehended by the police. Basiru Sanusi, their victim, was said to be riding his bicycle to his farm when he was cut down by the suspects. His body was found five days later, without eyes, heart and genitals. The same happened to Olanrewaju Sanusi, a 300-level computer science student of the Federal University of Technology, Akure. Sanusi' corpse was found without genitals in March 2001.“ (The News, 9. August 2004)
Am 23. August 2004 veröffentlicht The News eine Analyse zu Schreinen, bösen Wäldern und Ritualen im Igbo-Gebiet. Die nigerianische Zeitung berichtet darin, dass Menschenopfer und so genannte böse Wälder in einigen Gegenden Ost-Nigerias heute nach wie vor blühende und lebendige Traditionen darstellten. Besonders geht The News hierbei auf die Ereignisse von Okija ein, wo in einer Kultstätte 20 menschliche Schädel und über 50 Körper in verschiedenen Stadien der Verwesung gefunden worden seien. Zwischen den Toten seien auch noch lebendige Wesen, rund dreißig Menschen und ein Affe, in dem Schrein eingesperrt gewesen:
“Today, more than a century later, human sacrifice and Evil Forests are still alive and thriving in some parts of Eastern Nigeria. […] About 20 human skulls and over 50 corpses in different stages of decomposition were discovered by the police. Among them was a properly dressed but shrinking human body. He was laid in a white coffin. The pile of skeletons were once those of strong men, beautiful women and young children. All over the Ogwugwu Isi-Ula evil jungle were artefacts and charms of varying shapes and sizes. A parked Volvo car and bus found in the shrine contrasts sharply with its deadly background. Mr. Felix Ogbaudu, Anambra State police commissioner who directed the operations involving about 80 policemen, was moved to tears as he recaptured the scenes which he described as 'sordid and shocking.' But there were also living beings in the shrines. A monkey and about 30 people were among those arrested in the raids.” (The News, 23. August 2004; vgl. IRIN, 5. August 2004)
Auch die tageszeitung (TAZ) berichtet am 13. September 2004 über die Tradition der bösen Wälder und beschreibt die in den bösen Wäldern angesiedelten Schreine sowie deren kultische Funktion. In diesem Zusammenhang werden auch so genannte Schreingerichte erwähnt, bei denen Personen mit unreinem Gewissen sterben würden. Die Leichen der Toten würden nicht begraben sondern in den bösen Wald gebracht. Für detailliertere Informationen zu diesem Phänomen möchte ich Sie auf den gesamten Artikel verweisen:
Am 25. Oktober 2000 berichtet die nigerianische Tageszeitung The News über verschwundene Personen, die eventuell Ritualmorden zum Opfer gefallen sein könnten. Hierbei stellt die Zeitung fest, dass deren Anzahl in den 90er Jahren alarmierend gestiegen sei:
“Many Nigerian families have been subjected to excruciating psychological and emotional trauma as a result of searching for their loved ones (or at least, their corpses), who may probably have fallen victim of ritual killing. Hardly do Lagosians wake up any day without the gory sight of mutilated bodies, with missing vital parts assaulting their eyes. Although there is no comprehensive data to actually ascertain the number of victims of ritual killings, records made available to this magazine by the Federal Office of Statistics, Lagos, show that cases of missing persons have been on an alarming rise in the '90s. Between 1981 and 1994, 7,595 persons mysteriously disappeared as against a total number of 3,692 between 1995 and 1997. The whereabouts of over 50 per cent of these persons are still unknown. This year alone, an average of seven persons are declared missing every week. This pales into insignificance when put aside Kano's frightening figure of 25 missing persons per week.” (The News, 25. Oktober 2000)
Informationen zur Geheimgesellschaft der Ogboni
Für Überblicksdarstellungen zur Geheimgesellschaft der Ogboni möchte ich Sie auf folgende – leider bereits etwas ältere - Dokumente hinweisen: Das kanandische Immirgation and Refugee Board (IRB) setzt sich in seiner Anfragebeantwortung vom 12. Juli 2005 mit der Geschichte und Struktur der Ogboni, mit ihren Ritualen und Zeremonien, ihrem Verhältnis zu den Gemeinden, Mitgliedschaft sowie Zwangsrekrutierung auseinander. ACCORD geht in seinem Länderbericht zu Nigeria vom August 2004 im Kapitel zu den Ogboni auf folgende Themenbereiche ein: Historischer Hintergrund, andauernde Bedeutung der Ogboni-Geheimgesellschaften, Beitritt und Beitrittsverweigerung Geheimnisverrat, Schutz vor Übergriffen durch Geheimgesellschaften sowie Interne Fluchtalternative:
Diese Informationen beruhen auf einer zeitlich begrenzten Recherche in öffentlich zugänglichen Dokumenten, die ACCORD derzeit zur Verfügung stehen. Diese Antwort stellt keine Meinung zum Inhalt eines bestimmten Ansuchens um Asyl oder anderen internationalen Schutz dar. Wir empfehlen, die verwendeten Materialien zur Gänze durchzusehen.
Quellen:
Allgemeine Informationen zu Geheimgesellschaften
-
ACCORD - Austrian Centre for Country of Origin and Asylum Research and Documentation: 8th European Country of Origin Information Seminar Vienna, 28 - 29 June 2002: Seminarbericht – Nigeria, 28. November 2002
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/mv154_Ngr-cois-2002-rep.pdf (Zugriff am 3. Oktober 2008)
-
-
Verfolgung von Einzelpersonen durch Kulte / Geheimgesellschaften
-
ACCORD - Austrian Centre for Country of Origin and Asylum Research and Documentation: 8th European Country of Origin Information Seminar Vienna, 28 - 29 June 2002: Seminarbericht – Nigeria, 28. November 2002
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/mv154_Ngr-cois-2002-rep.pdf (Zugriff am 3. Oktober 2008)
Stehen Kulte / Geheimgesellschaften in Verbindung mit staatlichen Institutionen? Staatlicher Schutz vor Verfolgung durch Kulte / Geheimgesellschaften
-
ACCORD - Austrian Centre for Country of Origin and Asylum Research and Documentation: 8th European Country of Origin Information Seminar Vienna, 28 - 29 June 2002: Seminarbericht – Nigeria, 28. November 2002
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/mv154_Ngr-cois-2002-rep.pdf (Zugriff am 3. Oktober 2008)
-
-
-
Vorkommen von Menschenopfern
-
ACCORD - Austrian Centre for Country of Origin and Asylum Research and Documentation: 8th European Country of Origin Information Seminar Vienna (28 - 29 June 2002) Seminarbericht – Nigeria, 28. November 2002
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/mv154_Ngr-cois-2002-rep.pdf (Zugriff am 3. Oktober 2008)
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Informationen zur Geheimgesellschaft der Ogboni
