In a horrific act of mob violence, two women in the eastern Congolese village of Nyamutiri were stoned to death and their bodies set ablaze on Sunday night.
Locals claim the women, aged 60 and 65, were accused of witchcraft and blamed for causing the deaths of several villagers.
Andre Byaduniya, head of a local civil society group, confirmed the incident.
He reported that the mob rounded up the women late on Sunday and carried out the brutal killings before authorities could intervene.
Timothee Bakanirwa, an official from a neighboring region, expressed frustration at the lack of timely response from security forces, stating that “the police and the army could not intervene in time to save these two women.”
This incident casts a harsh light on the ongoing issue of witchcraft accusations and violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Nelly Adidja, representing the Association of Women in Media (AFEM), revealed that 33 women were killed in South Kivu province alone last year due to alleged sorcery.
The violence doesn’t stop at killings, with Adidja adding that “Many others have been chased out of their villages,” highlighting the wider social displacement caused by such accusations.
