Seven people killed by vigilantes in Malawi as panic over ‘vampire attacks’ turns violent
The people targeted by vengeful mobs are often wealthier individuals in rural parts of the southern African country
Jamiya Bauleni is one of the people claiming to have fallen victim to a wave of alleged vampire attacks that have triggered deadly vigilante violence in Malawi. She recounted her experience before barefoot children in Ngolongoliwa village in the country’s south, which has been at the heart of recent panic over rumours of vampire activity.
Her story is part of a long line of similar testimonies in Malawi, where belief in witchcraft and vampire activity is widespread and rouses revenge mobs that kill those suspected of black magic.
Bauleni, a 40-year-old single mother with one child, said that an attacker sucked her blood on the night of October 2 at her home in Thyolo district.
“This is not hearsay,” she told a fascinated crowd as people edged closer to listen. “I know my blood was sucked.
“I saw light on the corner of my roof. I failed to stand up from my bed and felt something piercing my left arm,” she said, pointing near her breast.
Bauleni, who makes a living selling wild pea stew, said that before she fell unconscious she heard someone fleeing the scene. She was taken to a clinic and later discharged after being given vitamin supplements, but she chose not to report the attack.