The impact of religious (mis)interpretation and cultural relativism on the accusations of witchcraft: An example of human rights violation from the Global South

Religious misinterpretation confuses the illiterate masses of any society. An addition of cultural relativism with it (religious misinterpretation) further reinforces such confusion and provides an impetus for the violation of human rights. Taking instances from Bangladesh this paper examines: 1) the interconnection between religious misinterpretation and cultural relativism, and the accusations of witchcraft; and 2) the human rights impact of such interconnection on women and children. It is argued that human rights violation of women and children relating to witchcraft accusations are undeniably connected to the religious misinterpretation and superiority of cultural relativism which often denies the principles of human rights including the idea and spirit of universalism, which goes against Bangladesh’s constitutional and international human rights commitments including the UN resolutions (especially those concerning harmful practices). The study concludes that the current harmful practices related to accusations of witchcraft have the effect of diminishing the spirit of human rights principles. Finally, a few recommendations are suggested so that the practices of Bangladesh are better aligned with international human rights law. The significance of this paper lies in exploring the nuances associated with religious misinterpretation-based witchcraft accusations, associated harmful practices and their ramifications on (non)ensuring the human rights of women and children that go beyond Global South.