Top Story: The Covenant of the Goddess (aka C.O.G.), an international organization of autonomous Wiccan groups and solitaries, has started its first official blog in order to spotlight its extensive interfaith work.

“I am happy to anounce that The Covenant of the Goddess has started a new National Interfaith Representative’s Blog. Four of our Representatives – Don Frew, Rachael Watcher, Rowan Fairgrove, and  youth representative Michelle Mueller will all be attending the Parliament of World Religions next week and reporting back on this blog.  Rachael has already made a perliminary post.”

As stated in the above excerpted press release, COG Interfaith Reports will feature coverage of their participation in the Parliament of the World’s Religions. Its first post, by Rachael Watcher, recounts how C.O.G. sponsored and facilitated the attendance of an Argentinian indigenous practitioner to the Melbourne gathering. In addition, Watcher is also coordinating with the Pagan Newswire Campaign’s Pagans at the Parliament project, and will be web-casting from the Parliament. I urge all of you interested in Pagan interfaith efforts and coverage of the Pagan presence at the Parliament of the World’s Religions to subscribe to their feed, link to the blog, and give them some feedback.

On a personal note, I’m extremely pleased to see C.O.G. take a big step forward in facilitating regular communication with the wider Pagan community. Even though C.O.G. has received attention in several published works over the years, many younger Pagans don’t know the great work this organization does in areas like interfaith, and fighting for equal treatment under the law. I hope this “big step” is just the beginning and that they’ll soon join other Pagan groups and businesses who are utilizing new media opportunities to make contact with our movement’s future.

In Other News: Influential fantasy author Robert Holdstock, best known for his Mythago Wood Cycle novels, passed away yesterday due to complications from an E. Coli infection. Holdstock, along with authors like Ursala Le Guin and Marion Zimmer Bradley helped break fantasy out of Tolkien mimicry, and pushed the genre in new directions.

“His Merlin Codex books are well regarded, but his most significant and lasting work is his Ryhope Wood fantasy series, beginning with the World Fantasy Award-winning Mythago Wood, (1984). This was one of the first post-Tolkien adult fantasy novels to have a contemporary setting. It was, like all Holdstock’s fantasy, deeply rooted in the traditions and botany of his native England, mixing Jungian archetypes with local folklore and a sprinkling of Lovecraft. It’s hard to overstate what a significant book it was—many people in Britain felt as if Mythago Wood was as revolutionary and groundbreaking in fantasy as Neuromancer was in science fiction that same year.”

It almost goes without saying that with the mythic themes Holdstock explored he drew a devoted Pagan audience, and that he also helped shape the “urban fantasy” genre that so readily mixes pagan themes into fictional settings. Our thoughts go out to his partner Sarah, his family, friends, and the many fans who are no doubt shaken by the news.

A story coming out of Uganda proves why laws against “witchcraft” (or any belief) are flawed. While the Pagans in South Africa are concerned that broad applications of such laws may curtail their religious freedoms, traditional indigenous practitioners in Uganda are concerned that malefic magic-workers are using a clause in the 1957 Witchcraft Act to escape prosecution.

“A group of children and traditional healers have petitioned Parliament to amend the Witchcraft Act 1957 to separate witchcraft from genuine traditional medicine. “We request the Government to amend the Witchcraft Act because witchcraft today is being practiced in the name of traditional medicine, which is widely acceptable to some Ugandans,” the petition read. The Act bans all witchcraft-related activities by imposing a life sentence or imprisonment of up to 10 years on anybody who threatens or causes harm, disease or death to others by practicing witchcraft.”

The current Witchcraft Act “does not include bona fide spirit worship or the bona fide manufacture, supply or sale of native medicines”, so protesters are asking for a special court to try witchcraft-related cases in order, I infer, to root out the guilty and protect the innocent. However, the minute you set up special “witchcraft courts” to determine who is a “witch” and who is a “traditional practitioner”, you run into all sort of problems. Who will get to decide such things? Won’t such a process be politicized? A emphasis on education and law enforcement (not to mention stabilizing the economy) would seem better bets in addressing this problem, rather than swimming deeper into the murky waters of legislating belief.

In a ceremony on Friday the Collegiate Church, one of the oldest Protestant denominations in America, held a joint ceremony with Lenape tribal representatives to acknowledge and apologize for their part in the massacre and displacement of the tribe.

“We consumed your resources, dehumanized your people and disregarded your culture, along with your dreams, hopes and great love for this land,” the Rev. Robert Chase told descendants from both sides. “With pain, we the Collegiate Church, remember our part in these events.”

While some Natives were a bit skeptical of a reconciliation, both parties ultimately viewed this as a positive step forward in healing a painful joint history. To find out more, there is a web site dedicated to this process called Healing Turtle Island.

In a final note, it seems Heather Graham’s witchy practices, which I mentioned here before, are hitting the news-wires yet again (must be a slow news day). This time the money-quote seems to be her group’s pro-Obama workings.

“We sent Barack Obama positive energies, so that he would become the next president. I always liked magic. Now when I see Obama’s picture in the paper, I feel good.”

I really don’t understand why this is making the celebrity gossip-rounds again. Do people really think Heather Graham’s coven had anything to do with Obama’s victory? Or that Obama personally welcomed Graham’s magical help? Would this story be news-worthy if it was a small Christian prayer group? Maybe there are some folks mad at her pro-public-option television ad?

That’s all I have for now, have a great day!

Top Story: Jon Lee Anderson of the Guardian brings us a riveting look at the massively violent drug wars raging in Rio’s favelas, where over 5000 people were murdered last year, and police-affiliated militias can be as deadly as the gangs. While exploring the question of if this situation can be reversed, and the culture of these gangs, Anderson focuses on Fernandinho, a gang-leader who converted to evangelical Christianity in 2007 and melds Christian morals with the violence of his trade.

“On 20 August 2007, a banner headline of the Rio tabloid Meia Hora said: “Thug beheads those who don’t follow his rules”, and underneath, “Fernandinho Guarabu, Dendê’s boss, uses an axe to execute his victims. The evangelical trafficker forbids even macumba in the favela.” (Macumba refers to one of the country’s African-derived religions, along with Umbanda and Candomblé, which strict evangelicals see as little more than witchcraft.) That same day, in the broadsheet O Dia, this report appeared: “In spite of his violence, the ‘word of God’ must always be propagated, sometimes in a radical way. Guarabu has supposedly banned Umbanda and Candomblé rituals, as well as spiritualist séances. At 6pm every day, a pastor’s prayer echoes on the narrow alleys.” What had happened was that Fernandinho had become friendly with Pastor Sidney, and had been born again. He took to his new faith with great enthusiasm. He had “Jesus Cristo” tattooed on one of his forearms in big letters, and Morro do Dendê was soon covered with new religious graffiti. The community swimming pool he had built now had a sign above it saying, “This Belongs to Jesus Christ”. Also, Fernandinho had supposedly ordered his men not to carry out “violent” crimes, such as carjacking, armed robbery and murder, although he was still selling drugs.”

Naturally, the story of Fernandinho’s conversion doesn’t have a happy ending for the Christians who sought to curb his violence. His gang is back to murdering informants, and Fernandinho is estranged from the pastor who converted him. That hasn’t stopped other, less scrupulous, pastors from ingratiating themselves, or even allowing their churches to be used by his operation. Proof, perhaps, that mere conversion can’t solve these problems, and may even redirect the violence into places they hadn’t anticipated (the violence against non-Christians in his favela for instance). With the international spotlight shining on Rio for the upcoming 2016 Summer Olympics, it should be interesting to see what the government does to curb gang violence and reform the police forces before massive floods of international tourists arrive.

In Other News: The Poughkeepsie Journal has a surprisingly solid article by Lauren Yanks exploring the Winter Solstice from a variety of view-points both secular and spiritual. This includes a local Wiccan shop-owner and a Norse Pagan employee.

“Patrick Twamley also works at the Awareness Shop. Twamley follows the Norse pagan tradition. “In the Norse pagan tradition, the night before the solstice is usually called Mother’s Night,” he said. “It’s a time to honor the female ancestors of your line. This probably goes back to the idea of the mother giving birth to the sun.” As part of the Norse tradition, on the winter solstice Twamley sprinkles everybody with ale as a way of bestowing a blessing, usually out of a blessing bowl. Then there is a feast and a toast to the female spirits. “It’s a way to show gratitude for all we’ve been given,” he said.”

Yanks also asks academics about Native American traditions relating to the Winter Solstice, and interviews the minister of the Uniterian Universalist Fellowship in Poughkeepsie. Maybe papers should encourage more academics (Yanks teaches English at SUNY New Paltz) to write features for them, they, at least, know to quote multiple sources.

It seems English Catholic Archbishop Vincent Nichols made a theological faux pas while at a visit to a Hindu temple in London and (allegedly) placed flowers on the altar of the Hindu deities. This most likely unwitting violation of the First Commandment has gotten Rod “Crunchy Con” Dreher’s dander up.

“I’ll say this for the Muslims: they know better than to get into this syncretism garbage. It is not only possible to honor other religions without paying homage to their gods, it is mandatory for Christians. I would not expect a Jew or a Muslim to cross himself at a Christian altar, or before a Christian crucifix or an icon. Nor would I be insulted in the least if he didn’t. It’s those who are indifferent to what a gesture like this means that worry me.”

Ah yes, “syncretism garbage”. Never mind that this wasn’t an act of “syncretism”, but most likely an unwitting mistake, it’s enough of an excuse to unleash the river of bile and snark Dreher holds for minority non-Christian faiths in general, and for Pagan and African diasporic faiths in particular. Did a polytheist kick his puppy as a child? Did Wiccans steal his lunch-money? It can’t simply be Christian piety that drives this particular immaturity.

So have you heard about the Goth Pagan Robin Hood yet? No? You are so missing out! It seems a man calling himself Frater Osiris Xnoubis robbed a bank wearing black leathers and then proceeded to hand the money out at a local sandwich shop.

“He handed a note to terrified cashier Laura Sulling telling her he was armed and demanded she hand over the cash in her till. Xnoubis, a Pagan worshipper, stuffed £6,570 into a bag and told her to “have a nice day” before calmly walking out of the HSBC branch in Terminus Road, Eastbourne. He walked a few yards to The Gildridge pub where he handed barmaid Gemma Clark a £20 note for a bottle of beer and told her to keep the change. After downing his drink he left and went to nearby Harrisons sandwich bar. He handed the bag of cash to astonished owner Clive Benneys, who was also his landlord, saying: “You are good people, help yourselves.” Xnoubis left the shop and promptly went to the police station in Grove Road where he confessed to the robbery.”

A psychiatric report stated he was depressed, but not mentally ill. A judge sentenced him to three-and-a-half years after a guilty plea. Perhaps years from now they’ll sing ballads for brave Frater Osiris Xnoubis, who stole from the rich and gave to the poor. Perhaps they’ll give him a merry band of goths and Pagans who help him in his quest! Hey, stranger things have happened.

In a final note, Erynn Rowan Laurie has a review up of “Ten Years of Triumph of the Moon”, a collection of essays inspired by, deriving from, or just celebrating the influential work of historian Ronald Hutton. She finds several things to like about the collection, but says its hindered by sloppy editing and some rather mediocre essays.

“There are a number of other articles in the book, some of which are passable, but unfortunately one of the editors had the least readable and least useful article in the whole compilation. It’s unfortunate he didn’t himself have an editor to look over his own work. I think that if you’re a Hutton fan, you’ll find a lot to like in this book, as well as a few things that might challenge your opinions. If you’re not specifically a Hutton fan but are interested in the state of scholarship regarding Paganism and the occult today, this will also be quite worth reading. Just be prepared for a lot of bad editing.”

Shame about the editing really, you’d expect better from an academic-oriented collection. Still, I’m looking forward to getting my hands on a copy for review (and my own edification).

That’s all I have for now, have a great day!

Last year I came across an odd case in the news, it centered around a New Age/Magick-practicing couple from Durham County, North Carolina. The couple, Joy Johnson (a chairwoman of the local Democratic Party) and Joseph Scott Craig, were accused of kidnapping and raping another couple under the auspices of a “Satanic ritual”.

“Prosecutors have charged three people, including two ranking members of the Durham County Democratic Party, as part of an investigation into allegations of rape and kidnapping that prosecutors said involved satanic worship … Authorities have said little about the case outside of the information included in arrest warrants, which allege that [Joseph Scott] Craig beat a man and a woman, raped the woman and that [Joy] Johnson watched as he did so. Durham County Assistant District Attorney Mark McCullough said earlier this week that charges stemmed from some sort of satanic ritual.”

From the beginning things didn’t seem quite right, lawyers for the couple insisted that what happened wasn’t rape and kidnapping, but consensual sadomasochism, and I started to wonder if the accusations were vindictive.

“Let’s deconstruct this for a moment. One couple meets another couple, allegedly through “a shared interest in Satan worship”. They then engage in, on three occasions, what sounds very much like cuckold play, a very, very common kink. The basic scenario, in short, is that a man (or woman) is restrained (mentally or physically) and “forced” to watch his (or her) partner sexually gratified by a stranger. While I’m not ruling out mental coercion, or that the final instance may have been done without consent, we may also be dealing with what sex columnist Dan Savage calls “drastic, disgusted, after-the-fact denial” (NSFW language at link).”

Despite some weird inconsistencies (like the fact that they had access to money, phones, and cars, and continued to live with the couple even after the alleged incidents), and testimony from the accusers that the four had indeed been living together and in an admitted consensual sexual relationship, a judge allowed the case to go forward.  Soon after that, the local Assistant District Attorney admitted that “some if not all of the charges may need to be modified”, and bail was subsequently lowered for both Joy Johnson and Joseph Scott Craig.

Finally, nearly a year and a half after the case began, and their lives ruined by the publicity and criminal charges, the two were convicted of misdemeanors in a plea arrangement (more here).

“WRAL reported that 25-year-old Joseph Scott Craig and his 30-year-old wife Joy Johnson were each sentenced Friday to two 60-day suspended sentences and a year of probation. Search warrants said the victims were a man and a woman who moved in with Craig and Johnson after they became friends through their satanic interests.”

Notice that the “Satanic” slurs continue, even after the entire case has fallen apart. The DA’s office gets a plea arrangement, most likely because the defendants didn’t have confidence in receiving a fair verdict, or the cash for a lengthy trial-and-appeal process, and the accused get an end to this ongoing nightmare.

We will most likely never know what really happened, but it almost certainly wasn’t some sort of Satanic rape-kidnapping scenario, where one of the alleged victims says she was “channeling demons” during the process. Now the accusers have almost certainly gotten what they wanted, the ruination of their former friends/lovers, and the accused have to be happy with their freedom. Whatever really happened, I doubt anyone would claim this farce to be justice.

Top Story: While not explicitly about Paganism, the Newspaper Death Watch blog pointed me to a fascinating new study entitled “New Entrepreneurs: New Perspectives on News” ( PDF version), that interviews fifty women news creators and consumers and transmits a reality that many of us involved in new-media already knew.

“New media creators seek to report on their communities by being actively involved in them. They engage in newsgathering and reporting that is informed by their own knowledge and sense of place. They seek to entice members of their community in robust conversations. They pay close attention to their readers and communities to figure out what is of interest …New media news creators deliberately employ more involved (participatory), less dispassionate points of view, while maintaining the distinction between news and opinion …The primary motivation of news creators in starting a community news site is to amplify a sense of community and connect its members in meaningful interactions … For news creators, the primary gap is a geographic one. They are seeking to fill a void that exists because traditional media never covered their communities or have abandoned coverage because of economic pressures.”

The above could read as a mission-statement for The Wild Hunt and hundreds of other blogs, podcasts, and new-media resources out there. I’m not “embedded” in the Pagan community, I’m a part of the Pagan community, and that intimacy and familiarity gives me a perspective and vitality that no mainstream journalist can hope to match. I do believe I can be passionate about a topic while distinguishing what is fact and what is merely my opinion.  Further, the study makes plain that media creators and consumers (an increasingly blurry distinction) are both frustrated by the current state of mainstream news reporting, pointing out how “old media” has been petty and hostile towards emerging new-media solutions and  outlets.

This new attitude/reality is certainly worrying for newspapers and other traditional news-outlets. As Newspaper Death Watch states: “reinvention doesn’t come without pain”, and that pain has yet to run its course. However, I believe in the long run this change in journalism and news-gathering will ultimately create more quality journalism, not less. Further, it will forever change the old paradigm of a select few deciding what is “newsworthy”. For many, what happens in the world of modern Paganism isn’t worth reporting, or only worth reporting during Halloween, but we are no longer limited by the page-count or the deadline. In the future, news will be initially generated by self-interested communities which will then “trickle-up” to larger journalism-creating entities as “big” stories emerge. News outlets that continue to ignore these changes will just become another statistic for the media “death-watchers”.

In Other News: Turning briefly to Catholicism, I’ve previously mentioned that American nuns are currently undergoing a “doctrinal assessment” to see if they are coloring inside the lines and not straying too far into feminism, practicing Reiki, or getting too cozy with Goddess-worshipers. Well it looks like many of the women religious aren’t going to go down quietly, by, well, being quiet.

“Most US women religious are failing to comply with a Vatican request to answer questions in a document from Apostolic Visitator, Mother Angela Millea. Leaders of congregations, instead, are leaving questions unanswered or sending in letters or copies of their communities’ constitutions, NCR Online reports. “There’s been almost universal resistance,” said one women religious familiar with the responses compiled by the congregation leaders. “We are saying ‘enough!’ In my 40 years in religious life I have never seen such unanimity.” The deadline for the questionnaires to be filled out and returned to the Vatican appointed apostolic visitator, Mother Mary Clare Millea, was November 20.”

So what happens when non-contemplative Catholic womens religious orders, the ones who are usually the most tied to and involved with their local communities (and hence, quite popular with the laity) put their foot down? Saying that they are through being “bullied”? We can’t be sure, but I doubt this is making Benedict XVI very happy. Something tells me this isn’t going to be the last instance of civil disobedience and non-compliance from American nuns.

The Religion Clause blog alerts me to an update on the South Carolina “I Believe” license plates story that I’ve covered here at The Wild Hunt in some depth. It seems the local Palmetto Family Council, instead of urging the state to issue unconstitutional endorsements of a single faith, is going to follow the law and sponsor the plates themselves.

“The plaintiffs who just won the lawsuit that killed the General Assembly-sanctioned “I Believe” license tag are saying they won’t protest Smith’s plan — as long as it’s a private group, and not state government, that is sponsoring the tag. “This would be a specialty license tag like all the other specialty tags,” said the Rev. Neal Jones, one of the four plaintiffs who filed the lawsuit over separation of church and state. “It would be an expression of freedom of speech by a private group, and we don’t have a problem with that.” Jones, pastor of the Universalist Unitarian Fellowship in Columbia, said he had discussed with the other three plaintiffs the possibility of a private group putting “I Believe” on a tag. “Everyone was fine with it,” he said.”

You know, if local Christian groups had just coughed up the $4000 dollars to sponsor the specialty plate in the first place we wouldn’t have had to have an expensive court battle. But I suppose that would rob local politicians of some quality Christian pandering for votes.

In another follow-up, the massive (and controversial) Nepalese ritual-animal-slaughter of the Gadhimai Mela is over and the AFP interviews some unrepentant participants in the killings.

“Munna Bahadur Khadgi, a professional butcher, said he had enjoyed the chance to give the goddess “something in return.” “Gadhimai has been kind enough for me to have a good life and I take this slaughter as a way of saying ‘thank you’,” said the 40-year-old, who said he had killed 200 buffalo this year. “I make money by killing animals normally but at the festival I do it for spiritual satisfaction. It is the least that I could do for the goddess and I didn’t want to miss this opportunity.” For 31-year-old Abhimanyu Rana, the slaughtering was in keeping with the family’s religious belief and practice. “When I was young I had seen my dad and grandpa slaughtering animals. I am proud that I am continuing the family history,” said Rana, who owns a local restaurant.”

But while many local Nepalese participants seemed pleased with the festivities, Utpal Parashar of the Hindustan Times seemed to have had a terrible time, saying the slaughter was “nauseating” and that he was pick-pocketed twice. Inside Nepal, a commentator for the Kathmandu Post, invoking Peter Singer, said the event was “the legitimization of violence in Nepal writ large”. The coalition lobbying to stop the mass-sacrifice points out that few safety and humane regulations were witnessed during the festival, and I can’t help but wonder if a reformation movement would have met with better success than a movement for a complete ban.

In a final note, now that Thanksgiving is over, people are turning toward Yuletide gift-giving and reporters are anxious to turn in their “pagan origins of Christmas” story before heading out for Black Friday deal-hunting. In an article about a festival of trees, the pre-Christian origins of hauling a tree indoors was cited, while a variety of letter-writers are quick to point out the pagan-ness of Christmas while considering church-state concerns. Meanwhile, SF Gate columnist Jon Carroll quotes a reader on the issue of Jews adapting and adopting Christmas for themselves.

“So can’t the Jews attempt something that the Christians did so successfully 200 or so years ago with a pagan celebration?”

Yes Virginia, Winter festivals do predate Christianity, and that religion did steal borrow many popular pagan traditions in the process. However, I’m not sold on the theory that Santa was a shaman. I’m more a “he exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist” kind of guy. I’m also a let everyone celebrate their Winter festivals in whatever way they want kind of guy, but I still think that Gap ad is stupid.

That’s all I have for now, have a great day!

Whether this is a day of thanksgiving or mourning (or even “unthanksgiving”) for you and yours, may you find contentment, happiness, and peace. The Wild Hunt will be taking the rest of the day off to cook and spend time with loved ones. I’d like to give thanks to everyone who reads, comments, and supports this blog. All of you give me something to be thankful for.

Regular posting will resume tomorrow.

In one week several modern Pagans from across the globe, and representing organizations like C.O.G., Temple of Ara, EarthSpirit, Cherry Hill Seminary, Earth Traditions, Circle Sanctuary, Solar Cross, the Pagan Federation, Reclaiming, and the World Congress of Ethnic Religions will gather in Melbourne, Australia for the Parliament of the World’s Religions. Held once every five years, the Parliament brings thousands of religious leaders and grassroots activists together to find common ground on issues that face us all, and attempts to build bridges of understanding between diverse faith traditions. Ever since the parliament’s rebirth in 1993, Pagans have been an active and visible presence at these gatherings, and today we play a vital role in its leadership as well.

“The Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions was created to cultivate harmony among the world’s religious and spiritual communities and foster their engagement with the world and its guiding institutions in order to achieve a just, peaceful and sustainable world.”

Simply put, our participation and movement toward leadership roles within the global interfaith community in the last fifteen years is extraordinary. We are emerging as a significant world-wide religious movement at a time where our voice and perspective is increasingly relevant and needed, especially when you consider that this Parliament in Melbourne is built around themes of healing the earth, dialog and reconciliation with indigenous peoples, and addressing the roots of religious extremism. This is an extraordinary time to be a Pagan, and Melbourne holds great potential to show where our future challenges and victories will emerge.

Because of the special nature of this event, I’ve coordinated with attending Pagans to create a Pagan Newswire Collective-hosted project to transmit the voices of Pagans at the Parliament to as many people in our interconnected communities as possible. “Pagans at the Parliament” will feature updates from Pagan attendees and presenters, including Moira Ashleigh of EarthSpirit, Pagan chaplain Patrick McCollum, Ed Hubbard of MagickTV/PagansTonight, and Parliament Board of Trustees members Angie Buchanan, and Phyllis Curott*. In addition, I’ll be linking to updates and media posted by attending Pagans elsewhere, and coordinating phone/Skype interviews with individuals in Melbourne. All the content will be licensed under the Creative Commons so that Pagan media outlets, including blogs, podcasts, and magazines, can immediately re-transmit content, and use the site as a primary source for longer articles and explorations of the issues raised. Here is the address, spread the word, link to it, and subscribe to the RSS feed.

http://parliament.pagannewswirecollective.com/

There are also social networking “Pagans at the Parliament” options, including a Twitter feed (follow us!) that will syndicate the blog and track Parliament-related tweets, as well as a fan-page on Facebook (become a fan!).  You can also count on The Wild Hunt distilling and commenting on all available updates on a regular basis during the Parliament.

I hope this endeavor will not only be enlightening, giving us a as-it-happens picture of Pagan participation in this historic event, but will also drive home the importance of building a modern Pagan journalism that can cover them when they happen. So join us December 3rd – 9th for what promises to be an exciting time.

*The three Pagan members of the Parliament Board of Trustees are Angie Buchanan, Phyllis Curott, and Andras Corban Arthen of EarthSpirit.

As a counter-point to the Saudi Arabia article I posted earlier this morning, the country of Nepal, as part of the U.N.’s International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (That’s today!) and the White Ribbon campaign to end violence against women, has launched a one-month media campaign to end witch-hunts against women in Nepal.

“…the Office of the Prime Minister and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Nepal (OHCHR) have jointly launched a one minute television clip highlighting the violence against women who are alleged to be practicing witchcraft.  A one-minute clip will be broadcast from the state-controlled Nepal Television just before the prime news at 8pm every day for the next one month. OHCHR and the PM’s office decided to air such video as a large number of women alleged to be practicing witchcraft mostly in the rural Terai have been ill-treated, tortured, brutally beaten up, and forced to eat human excreta.”

This is a big step, and should hopefully start a larger trend of governments taking the international witch-hunting epidemic seriously (Nepal is also taking part in the 2010 international initiative against violence towards women). It seems only natural that a country that honors “living goddesses” should concern itself with the welfare and safety of its women. If you’d like to thank Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal for addressing this issue, you can contact the Nepalese government, here.