SABC 3 re-aired a documentary on Special Assignment called 'Troubled Souls' last night.

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A look into witchcraft, churches

20 July 2010

CAN A four-month-old baby talk and walk at night and lead a horde of tokoloshes to drink water?

In a re-look at the topic of witchcraft in Limpopo, Special Assignment’s Busisiwe Ntuli discovered that churches in villages near Groblersdal promote this belief.

In an exclusive episode titled Troubled Souls, which will be screened tonight at 8.31pm on SABC1, the investigative programme exposes these churches for widely distributing recorded confessions on witchcraft made by children.

Over the years, many people have been killed and driven out of their villages after being accused of witchcraft.

At the New Generation Church in Lenting village, the church provides shelter to adults and children, many of whom are ill.

The founder and leader of the church, Pastor Bertha Mphahlele, says she wants to deliver people, including children, who are bound by evil spirits.

http://www.sowetan.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=1162612

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Here's a brief summary of the documentary.

The confession by two women and a child are highly implausible. All three share a common theme of being pricked on the 7th finger (by a snake, baboon, and three needles respectively) and then having to kill humans (as a consequence of now having become a Witch) to feed either zombies or mermaid. One mother accused both her children of being Witches, the youngest a 4 month old, of leading zombies to the river to drink water. These alleged confessions, and others, have been recorded by New Generation Church and DVD's are being sold.

A woman named Granny Mohlala whose confession is recorded on the DVD (name?), claims that she was coached by Pastor M.B Mphahlele and Adam Malaka before her confession was recorded. She was told to implicate her mother and children in the confession. She was promised clothing in exchange for her confession, and she was not told her confession would be sold. When her mother denied the accusation she was chased away from the church.

Another Pastor, Willie Mnguni, uses the accusations of children, whom he has coached, against women and men accused of either being Witches or of turning children into Witches.

The provincial head of the South African Council of Churches in Limpopo, Rev Mautji Pataki has condemned the recorded allegations as "theatre" and "not genuine confessions". Researcher Thias Kgatla who has spent many years researching the phenomena of Witchcraft accusations in South Africa, described accusations of Witchcraft as "nothing but lies".

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Do we tolerate irrational beliefs that motivate criminal actions ? No. Should we tolerate South African churches promoting prejudicial irrational belief about 'child-witchcraft' ? I say NO !

Too many already tolerate the demonstrably incorrect belief that muthi murderers are Witches. We know they are not.

I encourage you all to speak up and condemn 'child-witchcraft' accusations by churches and pastors in South Africa.

* The South African Pagan Rights Alliance will release a formal press statement shortly. SAPRA will also be lodging a complaint with the SA Human Rights Commission against the New Generation Church and Pastor Mphahlele.