http://blogs.news24.com/damonleff/facebook-network-against-drugs-promote...

A new group on Facebook called Network against Drugs and the Occult [0] is promoting the belief that those who participate in occult activities are drug abusers. Its creators believe that drugs are a doorway into Satanism. Administrators of this group include Jannie Engelbrecht (counsellor - drugs), Adri Storm (counsellor), Fiona Fourie (counsellor - the youth) and Marina Olckers Pretorius (counsellor - the occult).

"Dwelms en die okkulte loop hand aan hand. Daar is te veel mense wat dit ontken of bloot onverskillig daaromtrent is. Die okkulte kan baie mooi vermom word as blote onskuldige aktiwiteite wat baie aantrekkingskrag bied. Deur aan dwelms toe te gee word daar outomaties deure vir Satan en sy demone oopgemaak. Dit is 'n feit." [1]

English translation: Drugs and the occult go hand in hand. There are too many people who deny this or who are just irresponsible about it. The occult can disguise itself in seemingly simply innocent activities which are very magnetic. Through participating in drugs doors are automatically opened for Satan and his demons. This is a fact.

Johannes (Jannie) Engelbrecht, a Warrent Officer/Inspector for the South African Police Services (SAPS) explains,

"Satan doesn’t have to attack other religions, because they don’t accept Jesus Christ from Nazareth as the only beloved Son of God and part of the Godhead ( Trinity ). The attack of Satan is NOT AGAINST RELIGION, IT IS AGAINST CHRISTIANITY, AND THEREFORE CHRISTIANS. Other religions are already in the bag of Satan. He himself are god of all other religions, why then attack something he himself created. As for drugs as an object of Satan being used to make true Christians disloyal and faithless to Christianity, the whole world only attack Christianity as religion through all types of manners and the media. Nowhere in the world any other religion is attacked as much as Christianity, because Satan is the one that orchestrate these attacks. Satan already owns all other religions and occult groups. The only religion Satan needs to attack is Christianity because Jesus the Son of God already triumphed over death and Satan. Satan wants to own the souls of the followers of Jesus and drugs is one way to achieve that." [2]

The South African Pagan Rights Alliance has objected to the characterisation, by virtue of accusation alone, of South African citizens on the basis of their religious affiliation.

"Whilst SAPRA supports this advocacy campaign (Netwerk teen Dwelms en Okkulte) to the extent to which it seeks to offer assistance to those who abuse drugs, this Alliance does not approve of the assumption, made by the groups founder Jannie Engelbrecht, that Occultists in general are ipso facto either drug users or drug sellers. Engelbrecht has failed to provide an actual verifiable body of evidence to prove his prejudicial assumption concerning Occultists in general. This Alliance does not approve of the use of prejudicial religious propaganda by Engelbrecht & co. to deliberately denigrate South African citizens on the basis of their religious affiliation. Doing so merely dilutes the effectiveness of the core message of this group, namely that drug addiction destroys lives and drug addicts need help (irrespective of their religious affiliation)." [3]

On her blog Adri Storm, a deputy principal and the wife of a Christian minister, explains the possible motivation behind the impetus for the formation of this Christian support network?

"Ons het 4 seuns waarvan die derde 'n dwelmverslaafde is (tans skoon). Ons werk in ons gemeente, en ek is adjunkhoof by 'n skool. Omdat ons weet hoe verskriklik dwelmverslawing is, en hoe totaal hulpeloos ouers kan voel .... het ons ook nou begin om betrokke te raak by die ondersteuning van ouers in dieselfde moeilike situasie." [4]

English translation: We have 4 sons of which the third is a drug addict (currently clean). We work in our community, and I am a deputy principal at a school. Because we know how terrible drug addiction is, and how totally helpless parents can feel... we have now also started becoming involved in supporting parents in the same difficult situation.

It would appear that, however noble the intention of caring individuals to combat drug addiction, a real problem amongst teens irrespective of their religious affiliation, deliberately associating drug addiction with the practice of the occult alone prejudices occultists - Witches, Magicians and Satanists. The administrators of Netwerk teen Dwelms en Okkulte show no real empathy for actual drug users caught in a destructive cycle of dependence, who happen to be occultists. Rather, their intention is to convert practitioners of the occult to Christianity using any means necessary, including prejudicial stereotyping.

The content of this Facebook group is certainly offensive to those who identify their magical and esoteric religious practices as falling under the occult. Whilst the South African constitution clearly permits citizens to hold and express any opinion or belief - even if not true or provable - the Bill of Rights prohibits hate speech. Hate speech has a very narrow meaning in South African law. For speech to be hate speech, it must incite actual violence. This group does exactly that.

"Hierdie dwelmbesotte subkultuur moet vernietig word. Ons moet wapens teen hulle gebruik aangesien die godslasterlike overhede hulle met die wapen beskerm." [5]

English translation: This drug-crazed subculture (referring to the Occult) must be destroyed. We must use weapons against them since the Godd-less government protects them with weapons.

Attempts to engage in dialogue with Engelbrecht have proved fruitless. Bias doesn't like facts. Facts always confuse prejudice.

References:

[0]Netwerk teen Dwelms en Okkulte
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=87719306572&topic=10524
[1] Facebook group description Netwerk teen Dwelms en Okkulte
[2] Jannie Engelbrecht - 24 December 2009
[3] Facebook group stereotypes Pagans as drug addicts
http://www.paganrightsalliance.org/press.html
[4] Adri Storm
http://za.linkedin.com/in/a3a3a3
and source
http://adristorm-drugbusters.blogspot.com/2007_06_01_archive.html
[5] Netwerk teen Dwelms en Okkulte