Little Boy Called Witch And Abandoned By Parent’s, White Woman Then Adopted Him, You Won’t Believe What Happened Later

Anna Ringgren Lovin, a Danish-born woman who grew up in Sweden, was at home watching television when she happened upon a channel that was showing a documentary with the title “The Witch Children of Africa.” It was shocking to her that she learned that superstition was being used to torture and kill innocent children, and she decided to find out more.

However, with an endearing nature for philanthropic services, having worked as a humanitarian worker in countries such as Malawi and Tanzania, she beams her benevolent gesture to Nigeria with the documentary of “The Witch Children of Africa” serving as her catalyst against witchcraft accusations against children innocent in Nigeria.

Having established a Danish non-governmental organization in 2012 with a mission to raise awareness about superstition in Africa with a particular focus on Nigeria, she traveled to the country the following year for the first time in her life to begin the process of educating people about superstition. With the assistance of her husband, David Umem, she’s rescued over a hundred children who have been labeled as witches and has built what has been described as the largest Children’s Center in West Africa, known as Land of Hope Aqua IBM. She’s married to a Nigerian, and the couple has a son together.

“I was born and raised in Denmark, which is one of the safest and wealthiest countries on the planet,” she explained. “As a result, living and working in Nigeria has been a struggle as well as an educational experience. The birth of David Jr., my first child with David, in 2014 cemented my identity as a Nigerian mother. Although I have lived in Nigeria for seven years, I did so as a humanitarian worker in Africa, so I had a lot of experience with the continent before moving to Nigeria. Nigeria, on the other hand, is a country that sadly has numerous issues

I am deeply concerned about corruption and human rights concerns in Nigeria,” she stated. “Hope is one of the children saved by our team. He was abandoned by his parents when he was two years old and left unwell with hunger and worms feeding on his body. He was rescued in January 2016, eight months after he was sentenced to death after being accused of practicing witchcraft.” According to her, the incident occurred four years ago when she and the rest of the crew were on a mission rescue when they received a tip about an orphaned youngster in need of rescue from a local villager.

“As a result, we headed to the Village to investigate the situation. Before rescuing Hope, we had already rescued more than 50 Children, all of whom were in a horrific state, so we were well prepared,” as the townspeople stated. Hope’s parents were not present in the hamlet, and they left him alone on the street leading them to believe he was a witch. “We took Hope to the hospital for treatment, and the rest, as they say, is history,” said the family.

“In today’s world, he’s a very healthy and robust young kid who enjoys going to school and playing with his Land of Hope companions.” Anja, who has tattoos covering a major portion of her body, including the message “Hope,” which she says means “help one person every day,” shared her thoughts on the problems as a white woman working in Nigeria, saying, “Hope represents my life’s passion for me. In general, though, I believe that the world media has portrayed a very negative picture of Nigeria. In general, Nigerians are extremely pleasant and outgoing individuals.

I adore Nigeria and have a strong sense of belonging to the country. Nigerians are dedicated workers, but they also face a number of obstacles as a result of tremendous poverty and corruption,” says the author. “I believe that Nigerians are extremely powerful because they’re steadfast in their religion despite the setbacks they faced in recent years.

However, the country requires human rights activists like my husband and me to speak out against injustices and to fight for the rights of children in order to progress. For many years, David and I supported the government’s efforts by advocating on a consistent basis that people should defend the rights of all children by providing the children at Land of Hope with a good, sound, and qualitative education.

We’re also contributing to the government’s efforts as education is the key to unlocking the doors of consciousness. He hears about Christianity, witchcraft, and exorcism from a Christian perspective. While speaking on superstitious beliefs in Nigeria, Anja remained mum on her feelings towards witches, stating that superstition is especially prevalent in Cross River, Rivers, and Aqua Bomb states, where we have begun a vigorous effort to combat the plague of superstition. The beliefs of Pentecostal Christianity denominations are blended with the beliefs of native tribal religion in Aqua Bomb State, resulting in a lethal concoction that includes belief in witches and exorcism.

The stigmatization of children as witches is a relatively new phenomenon in Nigeria’s Niger Delta Region, which erupted in the 1990s after a brief period of repression. Prior to then, elderly ladies were the most frequently accused of practicing witchcraft. It was anticipated that 15,000 children had been branded in these southern states of Aqua Ibom and Cross Rivers by 2008, according to reports. According to studies conducted during that time period, documented incidents included children and babies who had nails driven into their brains, were made to drink cement, were set on fire, were disfigured by acid, were poisoned, and were even buried alive.

A 2010 UNICEF report stated that vulnerable children with physical disabilities or illnesses such as epilepsy are often targeted. While others are labeled as withdrawn, indolent, or disruptive, affirming that the Child Rights Act of 2003 had not yet been ratified in Nigeria, she stated that the country’s criminal code forbade accusing or even threatening to accuse someone of being a witch. Furthermore, under the Child Rights Act of 2003, it is an offense to subject any child to physical or emotional torture as well as to subject them to any cruel or degrading treatment.

However, even though this piece of law was enacted at the national level, it still must be legally ratified by the country’s 36 states. This not only confers exclusive responsibility on individual states, but it also empowers them to enact legislation that’s tailored to their particular circumstances. In Nigeria, only around three quarters of the states have adopted the legislation, and to date, only the state of Aqua Bomb has included explicit measures regarding the mistreatment of accused child witches.

In 2008, it passed a law that made witch branding criminal by a prison sentence of up to 10 years. Despite lobbying efforts, Cross River State has yet to change its own 2009 version of the legislation to expressly outlaw the practice. Nigeria is a country full of horror for the children, as girls as young as nine accused of witchcraft are tortured, sexually abused, and even buried alive.

Anja continued her story about Hope and others who were saved by her, also saying the following: “A woman who founded a charity to help children convicted of witchcraft was detailed how young girls are tormented, sexually molested, and even buried alive.

Anja Ringgren Levin, a Danish woman who founded Land of Hope in Nigeria in 2012, has rescued hundreds of abandoned children in the last eight years after seeing a documentary about superstition in Nigeria. The 42-year-old, who shares her time between Nigeria andAnja’s efforts to rescue and provide care for these vulnerable children in Nigeria are commendable.

By addressing the root causes of superstition and advocating for the rights of these children, she is making a significant impact on their lives and the communities in which they live. It’s important to support organizations like Land of Hope and individuals like Anja who are working tirelessly to create a better future for these children.