"The Witches' Village" a Gnani Travel Page by grets

To the uninitiated, it looks like any other Ghanaian village, but Gnani is no ordinary community. This is a village like no other village I have ever visited. The inhabitants are all witches. Gnani is one of several such villages in the north of Ghana. 640 witches live here, but it is estimated that over 2000 witches (or supposed witches) are living in exile in these camps. People come from as far away as Togo and Burkina Faso to seek the safety of a dedicated witches’ village.

Traditionally, if a person is condemned for being a witch, the villagers would batter them to death. Simple. Here, there is an alternative. The chief of Gnani village – a witch himself – accepts, and even encourages, witches to come and live in his village. This provides a real sanctuary for those unfortunate individuals who have been accused of witchcraft. There are laws in Ghana that forbid banishment and rituals that violate human rights, but no one has even been known to be been charged, let alone convicted, of accusing a woman of witchcraft. Witchcraft is a very emotive subject, and one which we do not fully understand in the West.