I was really shocked when people told me that in Gabon sometimes children disappear to be slaughtered in ritual killings. Every other month one can read about such cases in the local press. If one walks through the bush one finds ‘holy’ installations all over the place. Most of them, as a guide has told me, were erected during the last elections. They resemble this grave of a marabout, which I found on an old picture postcard:


Nigerian mob burns two suspected fetish killers

LAGOS, Oct 23 (Reuters) - A mob has burned alive at least two people in Nigeria suspected of killing people for body parts used in rituals, police said on Tuesday.
Trouble started following a rumour that fetish killers had kidnapped a little boy in Ikire in the southwestern state of Osun on Monday.
Coming after the body of a woman was found in the town on Saturday with her genitals removed, news of the kidnap spread fast, prompting youths to go on rampage.
They pursued some suspected ritualists to the palace of the local chief where they ran for safety.
"The youths set the palace ablaze after the staff refused to release the suspects to them. Two people were killed," said a police spokesman. They also torched several vehicles on the palace premises. An investigation has started.
Local media put the number of people burned at four.
Killing for rituals is common in Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, where many believe witchcraft involving the use of human organs can make them instant millionaires, or provide protection.
Nigeria is roughly split between Christians and Muslims, but many mix these foreign faiths with traditional beliefs.