by Rubina DOOBORY

In the Western world, lawyers have the most lucrative, rewarding and secured employment. If someone accidentally stumbles over a mislaid concrete slab on the pavement, that person can contact a lawyer and successfully sue the local authorities for compensation over a chipped toenail. Doctors are sued for malpractice, hospitals for negligence, managers are taken to court for discrimination and sexual harassment whilst bullish colleagues are dealt with accordingly. Lawyers thrive on personal tragedies even for trivial issues.

In our country, we have no such system. If one has a work related dilemma, consulting a lawyer might be the worst solution available. The lawyers, in the many cases one gets to hear about, would passionately advise on their inflation indexed fees, deliberate in impressive legal jargons, sweat profusely at the sight of other colleagues involved with the case and take no time explaining the duration of the dispute or chances of a victory. Most complaints raised by employees are settled by a golden handshake with the person made redundant and the lawyers on both sides, grinning their way to the bank.

If you somersault in the street due to the cowboy workmanship of the municipality labourers, you can only dust yourself off, curse the pavement and limp indignantly to your destination. We are very tolerant and accept inequalities and don?t look for more aggravation in trying to satisfactorily resolve an issue in court. We don?t trust the kangaroo courts in company dispute and the least said about our legal system the better.

However, some Mauritians, have their own lines of attack in dealing with their woes or in some cases to occupy their mundane lives. The worst tactic some people conform to ?an eye for an eye? adage is sickening, alarming and beyond comprehension: forget the lawyers in their Harry Potter attires and enter black magic, the panacea for many devil incarnates in our society. Most people, fear witchcraft more than the lanky local thief or the famished stray dogs lurking around the street corners.

Whilst invective language and a head banging with one?s handbag can scare off the thief, the dog looking for a shin to bite can be shooed away with the help of some pebbles. Nothing can alleviate the trepidation over black magic, the witchcraft of a neighbour, the magical coin dropping behind one?s seat at work and, to understand the machinations of these arts escape any logic.

Del Rio (1599) a catholic demonologist defined witchcraft as ?an art by which, by the power of a contract entered into with the devil, some wonders are wrought which pass the common understanding of men?. However unimaginable it might seem to those oblivious of what I am talking about, (I?m sure that there won?t be many of you) witchcraft is ardently practised in our midst, masqueraded under the cover of religion. These homo sapiens indulging in such macabre acts are the worst criminals in our midst and the enemies of any civilised society.

Witchcraft and black magic are mysterious matters, which most victims are ashamed to talk about in case their religious convictions are questioned, or they are regarded as attention seeking neurotics.

Here, if you have an argument with someone, that person will smile at your insults and consult a ?longanist? for revenge. Some crooked minded people, don?t even need an excuse, to cast spells or whatever they do to contact Satan. If they are jealous of a person?s status, work, husband, dogs or anything that titillates their fancy, then you must go out of your door smelling of garlic (It is supposed to chase away evil. Fat chance, with the professionals at work in Mauritius) Ask any priest or mawlana how many people, knock on their doors for deliverance from witchcraft. Some unscrupulous con artists claiming to be in a position to cure people can earn a handsome fortune from those afflicted but only end up messing up with their patients?? psyche.

Occult forces have been in existence for centuries and exorcism is rampant. These primitive, idle minded, good for nothing, who gain sadistic pleasures in black magic come in all forms and shapes and not in peaked hats or broomsticks. They are the ordinary grannies or Chachis with their saccharine smiles but malicious, devil streaks. We hear of countless accounts of how people become possessed after having a copious meal or having their personal belongings stolen and buried in a cemetery. These lunatics perform satanic rituals and their victims spend their lives antagonising about human nature. One look at our beaches, and one feels dizzy at the sight of the gear thrown in the waters. The seas abound with desiccated coconuts, flowers, limes, chillies, cloves, bottles and even undergarments and if you are unlucky enough to be swimming in shallow waters, you might be slapped in the face by floating panties or have an empty bottle ricocheted on your head.

What is wrong with these sick-minded ignoramuses? Why can?t we fight with words like normal people? What is wrong with uttering foul language couple with some well deserved slaps, punches and hair pulling? On one hand, we are trying to emulate the west in our liberal approach whilst on the other hand we are wrapping ourselves deeper in the cobwebs of witchcraft wizardry in our country.

We need a thorough investigation in those practices, which in all fairness is a Herculean task. The police had cracked down on some of the notorious graveyard fanciers but it is a serious waste of police time. We are asking the officers of the law to put their efforts aside in tackling serious crimes and instead of chasing after drug peddlers, murderers, they should be raiding graveyards. What is the logic? Why do we need to pay our taxes and help fund these types of police undertakings?

It is disheartening to see people resort to such barbaric malice to harm others. Jean Bodin, a French social scientist, talked of those witches and ?the eternal agonies which are prepared for them in hell?.

All the religious books talk about the damnations and repercussions of such actions but these people belong to a league of their own and to educate them is fruitless. If they can disregard the words of the lord then mortal beings like us have no chance. Our religious manifestation during Cavadee, Ramadan, Durga Pooja or Easter is tantalising but behind closed doors one is still wary of one?s neighbours.

An eye for an eye is translated into ?your sanity for my pride? in our society. All the religious leaders should address this issue and reach a consensus backed by the theologists and government on how to tackle such morbidity. Our legal system needs to be more transparent and may be there will be more trust in the lawyers and laws in place, than in Lucifer. In the meanwhile, sleep tight while you can.