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Medicine for Hatred: Civil, Criminal, and Supernatural Justice at the Nae We Shrine Tribunal in Accra, Ghana

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 June 2020

Jonathan Roberts Open the ORCID record for Jonathan Roberts [Opens in a new window] ,
Richard Nii Oshiu Codjoe ,
Jenny Davison ,
Flair Martin ,
Janet Mills  and
Zackary Parsons
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Abstract

Ga proverbial wisdom holds that “hate has no medicine,” but there is a sacred court in Accra where people can calm the animosity that emerges from social conflicts. A unique form of vernacular jurisprudence has emerged at the Nae We Shrine Tribunal, which manages the consequences of civil, criminal, and supernatural crimes without raising the ire of human rights activists. Using records from this shrine court, the authors of this article demonstrate how the Tribunal offers social and spiritual wellbeing in a manner that cannot be provided by the chiefly and state judicial systems.

Résumé

Résumé

Un proverbe Ga dit: « La haine n’a pas de remède ». C’est l’expression de l’inquiétude et de l’anxiété au sujet des dangers physiques, psychologiques et spirituels de l'animosité. Mais, dans un vieux quartier au cœur d'Accra, il y a un complexe familial où les sinistrés peuvent venir calmer et guérir leur colère causée par des conflits sociaux. Cette forme unique de jurisprudence traditionnelle qui a émergé du Sanctuaire Nae We, gère les conséquences des crimes civils, criminales et surnaturels, sans susciter la colère des défenseurs des droits de l'homme. En utilisant des documents de cette cour locale, les auteurs de cet article montrerent comment les prêtres et les anciens du Tribunal jouent un rôle de justice, culturellement adaptée en offrant un bien-être social et spirituel qui ne peut être fourni ni par les autorités ni par le système de justice conventionnelle.

Resumo

Resumo

Segundo um ditado popular da língua ga, “não há remédio para o ódio”, mas existe em Acra um templo aonde as pessoas se podem dirigir para acalmar os ânimos decorrentes dos conflitos sociais. No tribunal do templo Nae We, nasceu um singular tipo de jurisprudência vernacular, o qual administra as punições aplicadas a crimes de responsabilidade civil, criminal e sobrenatural sem com isso suscitar a fúria dos ativistas dos direitos humanos. Recorrendo aos registos deste tribunal local, os autores do presente artigo demonstram que se trata de uma instituição capaz de proporcionar um bem-estar social e espiritual que os sistemas judiciais do Estado não conseguem oferecer.

Keywords

justicetraditional lawhuman rightsGhanaAccrawitchcraft
Type
Article
Information
African Studies Review , Volume 63 , Issue 4 , December 2020 , pp. 782 - 804
Copyright
© African Studies Association, 2020

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