On December 22, 2024, German journalist Ulli Schauen visited the Sunday service at the Liberty Gospel Church, Calabar, Nigeria. He started filming openly. Then he got harassed.
Nobody stopped Ulli Schauen recording the Sunday service at the Liberty Gospel Church, Calabar, Nigeria, on December 22, as seen in a public broadcast spread by the church itself. Then during service, Schauen is yelled at by self-appointed pastor and Lady Apostle Helen Ukpabio but is allowed to stay. She also accuses him of being an agent. The first clip also documents Helen Ukpabio giving Schauen permission to record. „Feel free“, she says in regard to his recording. Later she will claim that Schauen wasn’t allowed to record.
Towards the end of the full 18 minute broadcast provided by the church, we first watch Ulli Schauen sitting on his chair. Then Ukpabio’s editors cut something out. Next, we watch Schauen being pushed around by church members. Ukpabio didn’t stop her followers. Instead, she incites her crowd by screaming: „He is aggressive. He is wild. He is a witch. He is a wizard.“ Below is the clip, but it has some frozen frames due to some original broadcasting issues.
„He is a witch. He is a wizard.“ (Helen Ukpabio about Ulli Schauen)
In the end of the clip, Helen Ukpabio is furious about some accusations of her stigmatizing children as witches leading to their killing. She brings up those accusations by herself.
After the recording ended, Ulli Schauen was questioned by local police. The German embassy in Nigeria got involved, and a German investigator in connection with the German Federal Buro Of Investigation provided assistance to the Nigerian officials.
Nigeria’s Witchcraft Problem Kills Thousands Of Children
Nigeria has thousands of self-proclaimed biblical prophets and self-appointed evangelical pastors. They feed on the uneducated and on the poor, earning millions of dollars. By making people believe witchcraft is real, they sell exorcism and other services. This has fatal consequences:
Some Parents Believe Their Children Are Witches
Children branded as witches are sometimes only two or three years old. They are then cast out, starved to death, killed, burned or buried alive. They are hung, or they are raped and then killed. Even after a „successful“ exorcism (meaning torture), they are often cast out by their families and left to die.
For further information watch this ARTE documentary on YouTube.
Nigerian Locals Need Real Education
There are many organizations that provide help for these children. Here are some:
Land of Hope (by Danish activists): https://landofhope.global/en/our-work/
CRARN: Child’s Right And Rehabilitation Center: https://crarn.net
Advocacy for Alleged Witches: https://advocacyforallegedwitches.com/about/
