Kenya’s Vidze tackles abuse with music and activism

The rapper stages music shows and theatre performances to raise funds for Kaya Godoma, a centre that offers refuge to the elderly who have fled their homes to escape being killed.

Vidze told Music In Africa that if the elders are not protected the community’s culture and heritage would be lost.

“The persecution of elderly men and women suspected of witchcraft remains unresolved in the coastal region,” he said.

“Witchcraft is being used as a cover for disputes over land and other family resources. These elderly land owners are coming under pressure to sell their ancestral land and those who refuse to sell are often branded witches by their own relatives and live in fear of violent attack or murder.”

Vidze said that the volunteering care givers engage the elderly in weaving, singing and dancing activities which are regularly showcased to the general public to prevent depression while at the centre.

Reports of old people getting killed or forced out of their homes in Ganze have been carried since 2012.

In 2013, the local media reported that according to the police in Kilifi, almost 120 people had been killed in the county on suspicion of witchcraft, with five to ten cases reported every week due to disputes over land and inheritance.

Vidze said that a recent visit to the Kilifi county offices revealed that the figures are down to 20 victims a month.

“This is due to the economic development in the region,” he said. “The new infrastructure projects and discovery of valuable oils and minerals have increased the cases and mostly it is family members chasing their parents or grandparents.”

The rapper says that he has plans to engage the Kilifi local government in drafting policies and initiating a public sensitization process aimed at providing better protection and rehabilitation for the county's elders.

He said the killings are a human rights violation and a well-funded awareness campaign would offer redemption to the local communities.

Unfortunately, this stereotype of the evil elderly person is not isolated to Kenya, where witchcraft is punishable by law. A report released in 2009 by the United Nations revealed that marginalized elderly people from Nepal to South Africa, have been attacked under the pretence of witchcraft.

To support the Kaya Godoma centre, you can email Vidze Kaladze Vidze via [email protected] or call +254 713 355 950.