Passport to Righted Childhood not Child Ritual Abuse by Dr Ignatius Gwanmesia

8/14/2019 Passport to Righted Childhood not Child Ritual Abuse by Dr Ignatius Gwanmesia

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Passport to Righted Childhood not Child Ritual Abuse

Daughter: Princess Christie Manji Makalih Gwanmesia, the Anti-Child

Trafficking mascot (Picture: Daddy Iggy)

In the ever sinister kaleidoscope of abuses some humans inflict on children, is ritual

abuse. Paradoxical to their simplistic image of rectitude to the extent of infallibility,

there are plausible arguments to suggest that the role of churches/religions in theritual abuse of children is becoming overtly significant. In the United Kingdom, the


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near quantum leap in the demography of fundamentalist religions; thanks to their

propaganda to provide solace in the face of increasing social exclusion, has been

accompanied by rituals practices on children that either directly harm or put them at

the risk of significant harm. Call it ritual abuse, exorcism, cleansing, purification or

spiritualisation the subjection of vulnerable children to any practices that predispose

them to danger; either physical or psychological is not only ethically deviant but in

some cases criminal. The irony in the ritual abuse of children by Black fundamentalist

sects in the United Kingdom is how prepared parents and supposed caregivers are

prepared to sacrifice the welfare of these vulnerable children to irrational practices to

achieve their own selfish ends. Based on unsubstantiated beliefs; inherent to their

respective indigenous heritages, black religious sects are socialising their followers

into ritual doctrines founded on the victimisation of children.

Ritual child abuse by sects is not a new phenomenon; however, society is only just

beginning to acknowledge and recognise its magnitude. Be it merely as political

propaganda paper; the fight against child abuse-related crimes as evident in most

party manifestos in the United Kingdom is testimony of the realism that child abuse

and the awareness of it permeates almost every orifice of todays society and

governance. Globally, mind-numbing minutiae evidence of child abuses consisting ofsexual sadism and pornography, physical torture, and highly sophisticated

psychological manipulation are imperceptibly becoming public knowledge. In spite of

these, it is of heightened concern how implicitly, few of our policy statements are

specifically enacted to address children-related deviances in general and the ritual

abuse of children in particular. Indeed, while the daily lives of vulnerable and

impoverished African children and the complex network of relationships and

structures which shape them are well known and documented, our theories, research

agendas, policies and programmes have not been grounded in, and informed by

these experiences. Similarly, in spite of the increasing awareness and evidence of

the occurrence of the ritual abuse of children by religious sects, there is a visible and

disconcerting deficiency in the availability of comprehensive data on the structure

and operational strategies of this enterprise. What little fragmented data is available

has been generated from journalism, secondary data from non-governmental

organisations, rumours and from informants. Consequently, there is the imperative to

develop a more systematic framework that will henceforth guide and inform the

formulation of relevant child protection policies. My extensive experience and


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Figure A. In Africa we respect children not give them rights. Bali elite, 2003

It is this disproportionate power relationship between the child victim of ritual abuse

and his or her abuser; and the diminished rights of children that has heightened the

vulnerability of children to ritual abuse.

Cognisant of these realities; there is urgent need for research to bridge the gap in

our knowledge base on child ritual abuse. The primary objective should be to

generate a macro-theory of the church or religions role within this power structure

where children constitute the primary victims, with variable but prevalently

detrimental consequences. While seeking to corroborate allegations of the ritual

abuse of children by religious sects, such thesis should simultaneously attempt to

identify alternative explanations for these human behaviours that seemingly defy

rationality. Within an enterprise shrouded in secrecy or freemasonry syndrome, and

on which comprehensive research is virtually non-existent, social workers, legal

professionals, law enforcements officers and relevant pro children organisations are

frustrated and confused in frontline practices when confronted with cases involving

the ritual abuse of children by religious sects. As such, any thesis on the ritual abuse

of children should be constructed to inform and guide relevant interventions by

professionals, especially childcare practitioners (social workers) who are in the front

line when the ritual abuse of children is uncovered and are expected to support the

victims and their families with little or no guidance. Indeed, the need for such thesis

to serve as a field or frontline companion to social workers, their trainers and those

involve in the enforcement of childrens right and protection is long overdue.

To the victims and survivors of child ritual abuse, any sensitisation on the reality of

ritual abuse should henceforth dispel the legends that have hitherto shrouded the


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horror of their experiences under the hands of agencies mistakenly perceived as

comprehensively children-friendly.

The reality about child protection is that, the effective, efficient, adequate and

appropriate safeguarding of the welfare of children is only attainable if related actions

are underpinned by the dogma that, child protection belongs to each and every one

of us equally. Within the balance of probability, the increasing exposure of child

abuse by clergies is reason-enough to dispel the myth of religious integrity that

hitherto synonymised the church / religion with moral rectitude. Human beings are

inherently fallible; given reasons, purpose and circumstance; the human being is

comprehensively capable of behaviours and actions that ethically defy rationality.

Any objective approach in addressing the ritual abuse of children by fundamentalist

religion should be founded on the reality that, religion is not necessarily the panacea

for social deprivation neither is it the iconography for rectitude

When I look at my small daughter Christie; vulnerable, comprehensively dependent

and yet as equally righted as Daddy, I wonder how and why anyone will be driven to

assault such sanctity of childhood. Dr Ignatius Gwanmesia.

Comments to Dr Ignatius [email protected]

Tel: 07951 622137 United Kingdom
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]

Documents

Passport to Righted Childhood not Child Ritual Abuse by Dr Ignatius Gwanmesia