Ghana-Trokosi-Ritual of Spiritual Bondage to Shrine, Servitude, & Sexual Exploitation of Young Girls

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Trokosi text from Report of the UN
Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women

MISSION TO GHANA

Report is Attached.

GHANA – Trokosi – Ritual Servitude & Sexual
Abuse

42.       Some
communities in the southern Volta Region and certain districts of the Greater
Accra Region still practise an outlawed custom, which involves ritual servitude
and sexual exploitation of girls. The custom requires a family to offer a
virgin daughter as a trokosi [1][1] to a traditional fetish shrine to ward off the punishment of the gods
for crimes or moral wrongdoings committed by a family member. The misdeeds for
which atonement is sought may often date back generations. One former trokosi, for instance, told me that her
family gave her to a fetish shrine when she was 8 years old, because her
great-grandfather had failed to repay a debt and subsequently family members
had started to die from seemingly mysterious causes.

43.       A
girl designated to become a trokosi is
usually committed at a very young age (6 to 10 years old) to the
shrine, where an initiation ritual betrothing the girl to the gods is
performed. The ritual establishes a relationship of spiritual bondage between
the girl and the shrine. From the moment of her betrothal, the trokosi must wear special insignia
indicating her status and outsiders
are prohibited from having any sexual contact with the girl. If a man sleeps
with a trokosi, his family is believed to have incurred the wrath of the
gods, therefore, must also offer a virgin daughter to the shrine. Meanwhile,
the girl with whom the man had sexual relations is ritually “purified” and
remains a trokosi at the shrine.

44.       In
addition to performing ritual duties and domestic chores at the shrine, a trokosi is usually also expected to work
long hours on farmland belonging to the shrine. She does not receive anything
in return for her labour and her family is required to provide her with food
and all other necessities.

45.       Once
a trokosi reaches puberty, the shrine’s fetish priest (tronua) is entitled to sleep with the
girl to consummate the marriage between her and the gods. Groomed from a very
young age into accepting their servitude at the shrine, the girls are not in a
position to refuse. Daughters born from such sexual relations also have certain
obligations to the shrine.

46.       After
serving several years at the shrine, a trokosi
may be released from servitude if her family pays for a special ceremony,
but she will retain a relationship with the shrine and continue to perform
certain rituals there. Released trokosi are
allowed to marry, but are often unable to find a husband. If a trokosi dies, her family is expected to
replace her with another girl and the cycle of ritual servitude and
exploitation recommences.

47.       In
1998, the Government passed a law against ritual servitude (among other
things), criminalizing the practice of trokosi, although there have been no prosecutions under the law.
Government officials were under the impression that the practice had since
almost vanished. Information obtained from other sources indicates that the
practice continues to thrive. Reportedly, there are at least 23 shrines in the
Volta Region and 3 in the Greater Accra Region which still accept trokosi.[2][2]

48.       In
many districts, the local authorities are reluctant to enforce the law against
ritual servitude, fearing a popular backlash. Some also seem to fear adverse
spiritual consequences for themselves. While a number of national authorities,
including the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice and the
Ministry for Women and Children’s Affairs have taken a strong stance against
the practice of trokosi, there are
many other elected politicians who fail to publicly denounce it in order not to
alienate key constituencies.

49.       Certain
intellectuals defend trokosi as an
indigenous religious tradition that provides girls with a form of
apprenticeship. None of the former trokosi,
with whom I have spoken, shared this view. One 17-year-old girl, the daughter
of a trokosi and a fetish priest who
had herself served in a shrine, asked me why only girls and not boys had to
suffer to atone for the misdeeds of their families.

50.       International
Needs Ghana (ING) and other non-governmental organizations have led efforts to
liberate trokosi and put an end to
the practice. According to ING’s own estimates 3,500 girls have so far
been liberated and 50 shrines have stopped accepting trokosi. ING seeks
to liberate trokosi with the cooperation and consent of affected
communities. Communities willing to cooperate are provided with much needed
development infrastructure such as schools and boreholes. Fetish priests and
shrine owners are encouraged to accept livestock or monetary donations, instead
of girls, from families seeking to appease the gods. Once liberation is agreed,
a ritual will be performed to break the spiritual bondage tying the trokosi to the shrine. Liberated trokosi are provided with the skills to
reintegrate into ordinary life at the ING Vocational Training Centre, which is
also open to other girls and women from affected communities.