The Never-ending Hunt: Where the Witches Still Burn

A HumanKind
Mar 23
2 min read

The fire didn’t die. It changed shape. It moved.

The stakes are gone, mostly. But the accusations remain. And so do the bodies.

We like to think witch hunts ended in dusty courtrooms centuries ago. But across the world, people are still being hunted. Still being blamed for drought, disease, death—for being women, for being different, for being seen.

They don’t always call it witchcraft. But they don’t need to.

India – “She cursed the land.”

In Jharkhand, Assam, Odisha—witch-hunting is not metaphor. It is still murder.

“They said my neighbor’s baby died because I looked at her wrong.”

Most victims are women. Many are widows. Poor. Elderly. Some are simply inconvenient.

They are dragged from homes, beaten, burned, thrown into rivers. Branded witches by neighbors, family, or anyone with something to gain.

Over 1,500 people have been killed for witchcraft in India in the last two decades. And those are just the names we know.

Tanzania – “Her eyes are red.”

Even today, in parts of Tanzania, elderly women are killed for being accused of witchcraft. Sometimes because they live alone. Sometimes because of smoke in their eyes.

And those with albinism face a different kind of horror. Their bodies are believed to carry magical power. They are hunted. Mutilated. Sold in parts.

“They chopped off her hand. Said it would bring wealth.”

Saudi Arabia – “Practicing sorcery.”

Here, witchcraft isn’t folklore. It’s a legal offense. And it carries the death penalty.

Women—often foreign domestic workers—have been arrested and executed for possession of talismans, books, herbs. Vague evidence. No clear definitions. No appeal.

“She had herbs. She read books. She’s a witch.”

Papua New Guinea – “Sanguma.”

Someone dies without explanation. The village demands one. And someone becomes the reason.

“When my brother died, they looked at me. I ran before they came.”

Accused of sanguma—black magic—women and girls are tied up, tortured, burned alive. Children have watched their mothers killed. Victims have survived with severed limbs and acid-burned faces.

This is not history. This is happening now.

The Internet – “Witch. Whore. Liar.”

You don’t need a torch to disappear someone now. You just need WiFi.

Post something loud. Speak without permission. Challenge a man. Show a body.

“They didn’t burn me. But they made sure I disappeared.”

Online harassment is gendered, global, and deliberate. Activists, journalists, and outspoken women are trolled, threatened, doxxed. Accused of destroying men, ruining families, spreading hate.

They’re called witches.Just with better spelling.

They don’t call it witchcraft anymore. But they still know how to name a woman dangerous. They still know how to gather the crowd.

And in many places, it doesn’t take much.

A child dies. A storm comes. A woman survives something she wasn’t supposed to.

And just like that—the hunt begins.

It didn’t end. It just moved.