A human rights hearing chaired by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) today on Capitol Hill helped expose the horrific crimes of ritual abuse and sacrifice in Africa, where victims—especially women and children—are mutilated and murdered by witch doctors and human traffickers to remove body parts, bodily fluids or organs for individuals who believe the horrible acts will bring wealth, health or other good fortune.

            “These horrific crimes are at times trivialized or falsely portrayed as myth, rumors, or misinformation—but they are very real,” said Rep. Smith, the Chair of the House Global Human Rights Subcommittee, who noted that much of the abuse happens while the victim is still alive and that many die afterwards from shock, pain or blood loss.

            “It is absolutely unacceptable that these gruesome crimes continue to occur, affecting so many vulnerable children and robbing them of their futures,” said Smith. “And it is deeply disturbing that cases continue to be underreported and inadequately addressed by law enforcement.”

            Smith’s hearing—entitled “Efforts to Address Ritual Abuse and Sacrifice in Africa”—included compelling testimony from a panel of expert witnesses, including Obed Byamugisha, Program Advisor for Kyampisi Childcare Ministries; Miriam Fullah, Trafficking in Persons Protection Manager for World Hope International; Dr. Alan White, Co-Executive Director of the Advocacy Foundation for Human Rights; and Josephine Aparo, Founding Member of the Global Survivor Network and International Justice Mission.

            “Child sacrifice has been defined as the harmful practice of removing a child’s body parts, blood or tissue of the child while still alive,” said Obed Byamugisha. “The act of sacrifice usually involves mutilation of body parts which may include genitals, limbs, eyes, and the heart.

            “These body parts are either worn, buried, or consumed by an individual in the belief that they will assist in several issues: overcoming illness, gaining wealth, obtaining blessings from ancestors, protection, and initiation, assisting with conception, and dictating the gender of the child,” Byamugisha said.

            “The issue of child sacrifice and organ harvesting is so shrouded in secrecy that getting data on this all-important issue is challenging,” said Miriam Fullah, who traveled from Sierra Leone to the US for the first time in her life to offer firsthand testimony.

            “Data generally in Sierra Leone is challenging to obtain, but even more so for this issue,” said Fullah. “Ritual murders are mostly prosecuted in court under murder generally but not in relation to it being a ritual, so it is hard to get data indicating the extent of the crime.”

            Smith said the crimes are especially prevalent around election seasons in Sub-Saharan Africa, where many children and adults go missing never to be found—or are found dead with missing body parts—because some politicians order such rituals as they seek to gain power.

            Dr. Alan White, who served as Chief of Investigations of the Special Court for Sierra Leone, recounted a disturbing news story he encountered shortly after arriving in Freetown, Sierra Leone: a 70-year-old man seeking to become Paramount Chief of a local village gruesomely killed a nine-year-old boy by slitting his throat, removing his liver, and taking some blood to local witch doctors to make a liquid concoction he could drink to give him “Juju”—or power.

            “While serving as the Chief of Investigations I witnessed and investigated some of the most horrific and unspeakable human rights violations no one could ever imagine that someone could inflict on another human being,” said White. “The horrors of civil war are always tragic, however, to see those involved in the commission of killing and torturing another human being by engaging in ritualistic activities was something I had not seen before and quite frankly prepared to deal with.”

            Smith, who authored the Stop Forced Organ Harvesting Act of 2023, said ritual abuse and sacrifice is an especially pernicious form of human trafficking that often involves trafficking of organs. His legislation, which passed the House earlier this year, would impose serious sanctions against anyone the President determines funds, sponsors or otherwise facilitates forced organ harvesting or trafficking in persons for the purposes of the removal of organs.

            “To truly take on this violence, we need the United States to continue to stand up as a leader in this fight,” said Josephine Aparo, who also urged Congress to move forward with reauthorizing the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA). Authored by Smith in 2000, the historic legislation was not reauthorized last Congress when Smith’s reauthorization bill (TVPRA)—which passed the House with overwhelming bipartisan support—was stalled in the Senate.

            “It is past time for this important legislation, which guides US programming and policy to combat human trafficking globally, to be reauthorized,” Aparo said. “Survivors, NGOs, and governments worldwide look to the United States as a leader on this issue and the TVPRA is central to this fight.”

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