Court jails men for witchcraft mvrder plot against President Hichilema

A court has sentenced two men to two years in prison for attempting to use witchcraft to k!ll President Hakainde Hichilema

Zambian Leonard Phiri and Mozambican Jasten Mabulesse Candunde were convicted under the Witchcraft Act after being arrested in December with charms in their possession, including a live chameleon.

“It is my considered view that the convicts were not only the enemy of the head of state but were also enemies of all Zambians,” magistrate Fine Mayambu said in his ruling.

The case has been closely followed in Zambia, as this was the first time anyone was put on trial for attempting to use witchcraft against a president.

The prosecution alleged that Phiri and Candunde were hired by a fugitive former MP to bewitch Hichilema.

Despite their insistence that they were bona fide traditional healers, the court found them guilty on two counts under the Witchcraft Act.

“The two accepted ownership of the charms. Phiri further demonstrated that the chameleon’s tail, once pricked and used in the ritual, would cause d8ath to occur within five days,” Magistrate Mayambu said.

The lawyer for the two men, Agrippa Malando, said his clients pleaded for leniency as they were first-time offenders.

He urged the court to fine them, but the request was rejected.

Magistrate Mayambu noted that many people in Zambia, like in other African countries, believed in witchcraft, even though it was not scientifically proven.

The law was designed to protect society from fear and harm caused by those claiming to have the power to carry out acts of witchcraft, he said.

“The question is not whether the accused are wizards or actually possess supernatural powers. It is whether they represented themselves as such, and the evidence clearly shows they did,” Magistrate Mayambu said.

In addition to the two-year sentence they were given for “professing” witchcraft, the men were sentenced to six months in prison for possessing charms.

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