14: Burned Alive – The Witch Murders of South Africa

Burned Alive – The Witch Murders of South Africa

Heinous Beliefs: Where Faith Meets Fear and Turns to Fire

In this chilling and emotional deep-dive, we expose a brutal truth that rarely makes headlines: people in modern-day South Africa mostly older women are still being accused of witchcraft and burned alive.

Yes, you read that right. This isn’t some ancient historical footnote from the 1600s. This is happening in the 2020s. Right now. In communities where fear, spiritual confusion, and poverty meet belief is still being used to justify murder.

In this episode, we cover:

• The real-life case of Anna Feti a 58-year-old woman with epilepsy who was falsely accused of cursing two young men. Her own neighbors dragged her into the street and burned her alive. The police stood by and did nothing.
  
  
• How culture, trauma, Christianity, colonialism, and traditional belief systems clash leaving vulnerable people in the crossfire.
  
  
• The psychology of mob violence: how grief, fear, and projection turn people into killers.
  
  
• The legal failure: outdated laws like South Africa’s Witchcraft Suppression Act of 1957 that criminalize witchcraft instead of protecting victims.
  
  
• The silence of the state and media and how this global crisis gets erased by mainstream narratives.
  
  
• The fact that this isn’t just a South Africa issue. Witch killings are still happening in Ghana, India, Papua New Guinea, Tanzania, and even in immigrant communities across the U.S. and Europe.
  
  

This episode is one of the heaviest we’ve done not only because of the horror of the crimes, but because of the silence that follows. No news coverage. No justice. No memorials. Just ashes.

But on Heinous Beliefs, we don’t do silence. We speak the truth, we say the names, and we ask the hard questions. Always.

Content Warning
This episode includes graphic descriptions of violence, death, elder abuse, and ideologically motivated murder. Listener discretion is strongly advised.

Want to talk to me or share your thoughts? Here's how to reach out:

Email: [e-mail]
Instagram: @heinousbeliefs

Have a case suggestion? Want to share your experience or be a guest on a future episode? I want to hear from you.

Support the podcast:

If this episode moved you — if it made you pause, feel, or question — share it. Rate it. Review it. Subscribe to the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google, Audioboom, or wherever you’re listening.

And talk about it. Because these victims deserved better. And their stories deserve to be heard.