More and more young children are being condemned as evil in Western Africa. These ‘witch children’ are then abused, abandoned or even murdered.
Previously, any child born prematurely or handicapped, along with albinos or twins, could be regarded as cursed. But today, any child who is disobedient is deemed a ‘witch child.’ Then, if they aren’t killed or mutilated, they are rejected by their families and have no other choice than to beg in the streets or to start working for diamond miners.
To understand this phenomenon, we meet these witch children who have taken over Congo’s streets. We follow them as they delve into the narrow, dark mines where they are used for their small size. But mine collapses are common and many young workers are killed.
In Senegal, many children are sent to city madrassas, where they are sent out to beg. When they’re not begging, they’re learning the Koran by heart and fighting off sleep and hunger as they dodge the master’s whip. We uncover.
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