Witchcraft has been linked to 2180 social services cases in the last year, according to a new report by the National FGM Centre.

Child abuse linked to faith or belief (CALFB) is a dark reality in the UK. Since 2014, 14,000 social services reports have been linked to witchcraft – also known as ‘juju’ or ‘jin’.

The statistics by the National FGM Centre coincide with the release of Kindoki Witch Boy, an autobiographical film exposing one boy’s account of being wrongly ‘exorcised’.

Mardoche Yembi, 33, was accused of witchcraft growing up in North London. His case was marked as abuse, and he found relief in living with a foster mother.  

This year marks 25 years since the death of Victoria Climbié, an eight-year-old girl who died after being tortured by her aunt as a means of ‘exorcising’ her, in one of “the worst child abuse cases ever seen”. Her aunt and aunt’s partner claimed she was possessed by evil spirits, and called a pastor to perform exorcisms on her.

Despite healthcare professionals seeing bruises and cuts on her body at appointments, young Vicotria was returned to her aunt’s care - as they were explained away as ‘self-inflicted’ childhood injuries. Victoria was forced to sleep in a big bag, and eventually died of hypothermia on the 25th February 2000.

Victoria and Mardoche lived only a few miles from one another. Mardoche said: “Part of this film is for her. She didn’t have a chance to make it. I want to keep her name alive.

“I want this film to transform something that was bad into something good, to help other children going through the same thing. I hope children who are being accused will see that there is help out there and they can survive it.”

Such cases are in direct contradiction to the Biblical picture of treating children. Matthew 19:14 (NIV) reads: “Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”