In Papua New Guinea (PNG), one of the most painful and complex challenges facing our families, communities, and the Church is violence driven by beliefs about sorcery. Sorcery accusation–related violence continues to harm vulnerable people, especially women and children, causing deep fear, suffering, and division. This reality calls us to work together with many partners to respond with justice, compassion, and hope.
Sorcery Accusation–Related Violence: A Deep Wound
Across PNG, accusations of sorcery are often used as justification for violence, torture, and even killing. These accusations frequently target the most vulnerable members of our society, including women and girls, elderly people, persons with disabilities, and others who are socially or economically marginalized.
These accusations often arise during moments of crisis—when sudden illness, death, conflict, or unexplained suffering affects a family or community. Instead of seeking medical, social, or psychological explanations, fear and suspicion can lead people to blame individuals accused of being “witches” or “sorcerers.”
The consequences are devastating: beatings, torture, killings, forced displacement from villages, and deep trauma that affects entire families and communities for generations.
A Collaborative and Ecumenical Response
At the Melanesian Institute, we see sorcery accusation–related violence not only as a pastoral issue but also as a serious human rights concern. Responding to this reality requires broad collaboration across Christian denominations and multiple sectors of society.
We work closely with churches, UN agencies such as UN Women and UNFPA, government departments including the Department of Justice and Attorney General, the Department for Community Development and Religion, and the National Department of Education. We also partner with development agencies supported by the Australian Government, human rights defenders, and media organizations.
This wide cooperation is essential because no single institution can address such a deeply rooted cultural and social issue alone.
From Research to Concrete Action
For many years, the Melanesian Institute has conducted research on sorcery beliefs and the violence connected to them. Today, our focus is on transforming that research into practical advocacy, education, and protection programs.
One major area of work is church and community formation. We train church leaders, pastors, catechists, and religious to speak with a clear and united voice against sorcery accusation–related violence. We encourage communities to re-examine cultural beliefs in the light of the Gospel and the dignity of every human person.
At the policy level, we engage with national and provincial authorities to strengthen legal protection for victims and improve accountability for perpetrators. Our goal is to ensure that laws are enforced and that survivors receive proper support.
Education is another important focus. We are helping to develop school curricula and community training materials that promote human dignity, critical reflection on beliefs about sorcery, and nonviolent conflict resolution. Both Catholic and Protestant school systems are being encouraged to integrate these materials into their educational programs.
Media partnerships also play a key role by helping to counter harmful narratives, spread accurate information, and highlight stories of survivors and communities working toward healing and change.
Mobilizing Religious Congregations for Advocacy
During the annual meeting of Catholic religious superiors in PNG and the Solomon Islands, supported by SSpS and SVD JPIC coordinators, including Sr. Arnold Kavanamur and Fr. Vincent Wasaring, we gave special attention to sorcery-related violence.
We brought together JPIC coordinators from various congregations to reflect on how data from schools, health centers, parishes, and social ministries can become a strong foundation for advocacy. We also encouraged religious superiors to view VIVAT International as an important channel for raising local concerns internationally, including within the UN Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process.
This reflects a broader shift—from seeing ourselves only as service providers to recognizing our responsibility as advocates for justice and human dignity.
Linking Local Struggles to Global Advocacy
Sorcery accusation–related violence is not only a local pastoral issue; it is a grave human rights violation. Through collaboration with UN agencies, Church-based networks, and regional and national institutions, we are working to ensure that Papua New Guinea’s UPR process and other international mechanisms reflect the reality of these abuses and the urgent need for change.
Through VIVAT International and other partners, we hope that the voices of victims, survivors, and defenders in PNG will be heard more clearly on the global stage.
A Call to Prayer and Solidarity
The situation in Papua New Guinea remains painful and complex, and change can be slow. Yet we continue to see signs of hope: stronger cooperation among churches, greater openness from government institutions, and increasing awareness within communities that violence justified by sorcery beliefs is unacceptable.
I invite the wider VIVAT network to pray for those accused of sorcery and for those working to protect them, to stand in solidarity with our churches and human rights defenders, and to support efforts to raise this issue in international forums.
In the midst of fear and violence, I continue to believe that the Gospel of life, justice, and peace can transform hearts, communities, and systems. This hope sustains us as we work for dignity, healing, and lasting peace in Papua New Guinea.
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