The senseless evil of religion claims the lives of too many innocent children each year. Most are simply allowed to die without medical attention as parents sit at the bedside offering prayers to an empty sky; some are much more sinister. These days we are seeing more Christians from Africa killing and torturing children on the pretext of “witch-hunting.”
I recently read about the murder of 15-year-old Kristy Bamu. He was killed by Eric Bikubi and his sister, Magalie Bamu in London on a Christmas vacation in 2010. Bikubi also tortured two of the victim’s sisters as he believed the three children were practicing witchcraft. The three children had apparently been sent to visit their sister, Magalie, and her partner for Christmas. The children lived in France with their parents. The family was originally from the Congo, however, where the belief in kindoki – the Lingala word for sorcery – is common.
The account of Kristy Bamu’s murder is hard to read, but is nothing compared to the amount of torture he underwent before succumbing to death, pathologist reports show the boy suffered over 100 injuries. As you read through some of these quotes from the Guardian remember that this act of perversion was carried out for Yahweh in accordance to his command found in Exodus 22:18 . . . Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.
Kristy and four siblings were sent by their parents, from their home in Paris, to see their sister and his partner on 16 December. A few days passed ‘pleasantly enough,’ then Bikubi said some of the children were possessed by spirits and were having an evil influence on a younger child in the house, it is claimed.
‘Despite her own siblings’ denials that they were involved in witchcraft, Magalie Bamu joined her boyfriend in repeating these fantastic claims and participating in the assaults,’ said Brian Altman QC, prosecuting.
The court was told that over a period of days the pair, originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo, attempted to exorcise evil spirits they believed were in three of the children – Kristy, his sister Kelly, 20, and their 11-year-old sister, who cannot be named. Bikubi refused ‘to let them eat, drink or sleep for days, while the punishments became increasingly violent, with [the attackers] using the many implements found in the flat as weapons of torture,’ Altman said.
During their ordeal the siblings were forced to pray and chant throughout several nights and, in a ‘staggering act of depravity and cruelty,’ the defendants recruited sibling against sibling as ‘vehicles for their violence,’ said Altman.
Kristy became the focus of Bikubi’s attention, the court heard. He allegedly struck the boy with a hammer in the face, knocking out his teeth; on another occasion he shoved a metal bar into the teenager’s mouth, the court heard.
When Kelly attempted to hit her brother using something light, she was ordered to use a heavier implement. In a desperate attempt to prevent any further suffering, Kristy and his two sisters eventually admitted to being sorcerers, said Altman. ‘As Kristy’s injuries became ever more severe he even pleaded to be allowed to die,’ he added.
When paramedics got to the flat just after midday on Christmas Day 2010, there was blood across walls, furniture, ceiling and floor.
. . .
The jury heard an account of the last moments of Kristy’s life. ‘Eventually, Bikubi took him into the bathroom, put him in the bath and started to run the water. Kirsty was just too badly injured and exhausted to resist or to keep his head above the water,’ said Altman. ‘While Kristy succumbed to death, Bikubi put Yves, Kelly and the two other children into the bath with their brother and hosed them all down with cold water using a shower head.’
. . .
When Kristy was found by paramedics in the eighth-floor flat in Forest Gate, his head, face, back and arms were covered in deep cuts and bruises, and several of his teeth were missing.”
Bikubi is obviously a psychopath, a religious one, whose actions were fueled by his religious beliefs. Humans are capable of performing horrendous acts of savagery and religion acts as a nice lubrication to get the barbarism flowing.
The irrational fear of sorcery is present in the Congo and it was the main factor manipulating these people to commit this heinous crime. The only reason we can view sorcery as an irrational fear is because we recognize it as superstitious bullshit, to the true believer it isn’t irrational. A person who believes in the reality of witchcraft perceives it an evil threat to their life. It becomes a rational fear based on an irrational belief.
This is why having unfounded beliefs is a terrible thing.
