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The Harvester's Garden: Females as Body Parts in Nigeria

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Abstract

The sinister and illicit harvesting of human organs is a new normal in Nigeria, where a coalition of socioeconomic strains, political tensions, and economic desires fuel predators dubbed as ‘body hunters.’ Females are prime targets, and their harvested parts feed into the Red Market or serve in economic rituals. This study argues that such acts, particularly the extraction of female reproductive organs and fluids, are gender-motivated, and with products of death, it is a Femicide. Whether consensual or forced, intentional or accidental, these deaths are Femicide and the ultimate act of violence against womanhood. Focusing on cisgender victims, I analyze real cases from social media and a journal article using Galtung’s Violence Triangle to reveal that Femicide transcends direct perpetrators.
International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE)
Volume 11, Issue 8, August 2024, PP 43-53
ISSN 2349-0373 (Print) & ISSN 2349-0381 (Online)
https://doi.org/10.20431/2349-0381.1108006
www.arcjournals.org
International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Page | 43
The Harvesters Garden: Females as Body Parts in Nigeria
Jessica Ojiugo Chinonye*
University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, USA.
1. INTRODUCTION
While illicit organ harvesting has existed for decades in Nigeria, it has become a new normal in
recent years. Scholars attribute the prevalence to exacerbated socioeconomic challenges and political
tensions (Adeyemo, 2022; Salihu et al., 2019). Body hunters primarily prey on females because they
consider them “soft targets...with intrinsic enriching value” (Nwakanma &Abu, 2020, p. 15447).
Their parts are traded in the Red Market
1
(Martin, 2012) or used for economic ritual purposes. I argue
that the demand for and the illegal extraction of female genitalia and bodily fluid from the
reproductive organs in contemporary Nigeria is, in fact, gendered. In cases where such illicit
extractions produce death, whether intentional or unintentional, consensual or non-consensual, it is a
Femicide (killing of a female because of her gender
2
). This study focuses on cisgender individuals.
That is, Nigerian victims whose identities conform to their assigned sex at birth and the socially
constructed roles and behaviors of that sex. Also, I use Johan Galtungs Violence Triangle framework
to analyze five reported cases of gender-motivated organ harvesting on social media and a journal
article to emphasize that Femicide goes beyond those who commit direct acts of violence. It is also
structural violence now Feminicide because the state fails to protect its citizens and is legitimized
by cultural violence. Therefore, it is crucial to consider direct, structural, and cultural violence
dimensions to tackle Femicide.
UN Women (2022)
3
defines Femicide as an intentional killing with a gender-related motivation.
Femicide may be driven by stereotyped gender roles, discrimination towards women and girls,
unequal power relations between women and men, or harmful social norms.” A general definition is
intentionally killing females because of their gender. A limitation across countries, including Nigeria,
is defining the motivation behind the killing to prove that it is, in fact, gendered. This is why many
1
Red Market is the human parts market.
2
The World Health Organization (WHO) (2022) defines gender as “the characteristics of women, men, girls, and
boys that are socially constructed. This includes norms, behaviors, and roles associated with being a woman,
man, girl, or boy, as well as relationships with each other.” Therefore, every society upholds unique gender
constructs (WHO, 2022). Sex and gender are disparate terms but interact with each other (WHO, 2022). Sex is
an individuals biological or physiological characteristics (WHO, 2022) assigned based on the genitals and
chromosomes at birth or after biological reconstruction surgeries to change reproductive characteristics. Gender
encompasses social identities that may or may not conform to innate biological characteristics and socially
constructed behaviors of the sex assigned at birth.
3
Accessed on the 22nd of April 2023 (see references section for citation)
Abstract: The sinister and illicit harvesting of human organs is a new normal in Nigeria, where a coalition of
socioeconomic strains, political tensions, and economic desires fuel predators dubbed as ‘body hunters.’
Females are prime targets, and their harvested parts feed into the Red Market or serve in economic rituals.
This study argues that such acts, particularly the extraction of female reproductive organs and fluids, are
gender-motivated, and with products of death, it is a Femicide. Whether consensual or forced, intentional or
accidental, these deaths are Femicide and the ultimate act of violence against womanhood. Focusing on
cisgender victims, I analyze real cases from social media and a journal article using Galtung’s Violence
Triangle to reveal that Femicide transcends direct perpetrators.
Keywords: Illicit Organ Harvesting, Femicide, Nigeria, Direct Violence, Cultural Violence, Structural
Violence
*Corresponding Author: Jessica Ojiugo Chinonye, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, USA.
The Harvester’s Garden: Females as Body Parts in Nigeria
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female gender-motivated killings in Nigeria are charged as homicides rather than as Femicides.
Some are never criminalized.
I agree with Hefti (2022, p. 2) that Femicides definition should extend beyond the direct killing of
“women and girls” due to their gender “because it is more complex in reality.” Hefti (2022, p. 2)
conceptualizes Femicide in broader terms to cover the many other human rights violations, such as
the right to access to justice, the prohibition of torture, and other rights, aside from killings.”
However, I expand Heftis (2022) definition of Femicide to suit my context. Femicide begins with the
demand for female body parts and fluids from the reproductive organs (the process), involves illegal
extractions producing death, whether intentional or unintentional, consensual or non-consensual
(death itself), and societys reactions/actions after her death. My definition exposes several
perpetrators structural failures that propel organ trade and harvesting, cultural structures that
tolerate human rights violations, individuals who commit the direct act of killing, and state actors and
societys reactions/responses after her death.
Human parts (organs, blood, blood tissues and fluids, gametes) donation, transportation, and
transplantation are legal medical processes in Nigeria that require several ethical considerations
(Emmanuel &Nabena, 2020). The parts can be harvested from living or dead donors. However, it
becomes illegal under Nigerias National Health Act when conducted in unauthorized medical
facilities without the written consent of donors and medical practitioners overseeing the clinical
facilities (Obani &Okunrobo, 2020). Also, financial compensations for donors attract a jail term
except “reimbursement for the reasonable cost incurred by the donor in connection with the organ
donation” (Emmanuel &Nabena, 2020, p. 132). While several scholars discuss the loopholes in
Nigerias organ harvesting laws (Adeyemo, 2022; Bakari et al., 2012; Emmanuel &Nabena, 2020), I
adopt the laws prohibitions to ground two illegal categories of organ harvesting: organ trafficking
and ritual killings.
I define organ trafficking as having at least one of the following characteristics:
Transporting people under proscribed conditions with intentions to sell their body parts/including
bodily fluids (Uwaoma et al., 2011), whether consensual or non-consensual
Extracting and/or transporting the parts of cadavers under proscribed conditions with or without
the written consent of their authorized living representatives
Financial compensations with exceptions to the laws provisions for such cases in exchange for
human parts
Illegally killing people to harvest their organs.
All activities that facilitate the illicit commercialization of human parts (Adeyemo, 2022).
Rituals, on the other hand, are “a series or chain of actions that involve the use of gestures, specific
words (with intonation and syntax), objects (including roots and herbs), and animals or human body
parts as materials for sacrifices” (Salihu et al., 2019, p. 34). In the pre-colonial era, although now
illegal, human parts sacrifices were carried out communally (required communal consent and
inferred communal killing) for the benefit of the community. In contemporary Nigeria, ritual
harvesting is motivated by evil intentions for fame, wealth, power, protection, and favor. Juju
4
priests
and occultic leaders demand human parts and/or fluid to aid the potency of their customers’ spiritual
sacrifices or requested potions. This study focuses on economic-motivated ritual killings. Therefore, I
define ritual harvesting as the extraction or mutilation of human parts, tissues and/or fluids for
spiritual economic prosperity sacrifices and preparing magical wealth potions. I emphasize that organs
can be trafficked, and individuals may purchase trafficked organs from the Red Market for ritual
purposes.
2. BACKGROUND
Organ harvesting dates to Nigerias pre-colonial era. This was when communities sacrificed human
parts to deities for protection, cleansing, appeasement, and restoration during misfortunes like
endemics, paramount rulers deaths, incessant child mortality (Aghawenu& Baptist Theological
Seminary, 2020; Salihu et al., 2019), and during inter-community wars. Communities in this era
valued the philosophy of being our brothers keeper and so preserved and protected the lives of their
own. Their victims were usually slaves, outcasts, captives, and community members who were
4
Spiritual belief requiring objects, liquid, and powdery substances for magical spells
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criminal offenders or committed abominable acts like incest (now considered strangers)
(Aghawenu& Baptist Theological Seminary, 2020; Salihu et al., 2019). However, private sacrifices of
strangers or community members outside stipulated communal rituals were prohibited (Salihu et
al., 2019), including self-harm.
The colonial era introduced new religions that condemned barbaric acts associated with harvesting
human organs, and its government institutionalized laws prohibiting human sacrifices. By 1916
(colonial era), human parts sacrifices, whether for appeasement, protection through magical
powers, juju, or cleansing, were criminalized under Nigerias Penal Code (Oyewole, 2016). After
independence on October 1st, 1960, Nigeria adapted the colonial law with considerations for existing
native laws. Over various periods, the law was amended
5
, and the latest criminal laws are codified in
the Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990.
Section 210(f) of the Nigerian Criminal Code Act of 1990 criminalizes individuals who “makes or
uses or assists in making or using or has in his [or her] possession anything whatsoever the making,
use or possession of which has been prohibited by an order as being or believed to be associated with
human sacrifice or other unlawful practice” (Nigeria Criminal Code Act, 1990; Oyewole, 2016, p.
37). Section 210(e) outlaws the “possession of human remains which are used or are intended to be
used in connection with the worship or invocation of any juju” (Nigeria Criminal Code Act, 1990;
Oyewole, 2016, p. 38). Yet, human parts harvesting is still carried out in discreet locations.
Though traditional organ ritual practices dominant in the pre-colonial era may still exist today, illicit
organ harvesting has evolved into a lucrative adaptation mechanism to Nigerias socioeconomic
challenges. Scholars report that such challenges include multidimensional poverty, insecurity,
unemployment, poor/limited infrastructure, unfavorable business environments, and weak educational
systems (Adeyemo, 2022; Salihu et al., 2019). Social acceptance in the country is highly dependent on
“properties, luxuries; excessive acquisition of wealth,” and the mode of wealth acquisition is too often
unquestioned (Salihu et al., 2019, p. 35), especially for generous individuals. Making money
becomes the channel for socioeconomic liberation (affording expensive schools, installing security
devices in homes, living in neighborhoods with good roads and efficient power supply) and
inauguration into the powerful and reverenced social class. Therefore, ones socioeconomic status is
not different from ones social class.
These economic and societal pressures have conscripted many Nigerians into the Get-Rich-Quick
force that has fueled illegalities such as internet fraud, drug trafficking, misappropriation of
government funds, human trafficking, and armed robbery, amongst others. Illicit organ harvesting is
taking dimensions of organ trafficking traded in the Red Market or ritual harvesting. Recorded
patterns of operations are kidnapping, human trafficking, sex to have contact with reproductive fluid
and organs (Adeyemo, 2022; Aghawenu& Baptist Theological Seminary, 2020; Oyewole, 2016), on-
spot murders, using diabolic charms like powders and touch & follow
6
to hypnotize people into
organ harvesting locations or to force consent. Even when there is informed consent (void of any
direct coercion, manipulation, deceit, or exploitation), I refer to such individuals as victims because
they are vulnerable to structural failures, which I will argue Galtung calls structural violence
7
.
Months to days leading to festive celebrations such as Christmas, Easter, yearly religious
pilgrimages, New Yam Festivals
8
, and local festivals are believed to be the apogee of illicit human
parts harvesting (Aghawenu& Baptist Theological Seminary, 2020; Uwaoma et al., 2011). This is
because of extreme pressures to share gifts, buy new clothes and shoes, travel to be with family, and
meet financial obligations. However, in the last few years, it has reached an alarming rate with little or
no effort from the Nigerian government to mitigate the trend (Nwakanma & Abu, 2020). Every other
day, newspapers, television stations, and Nigerian social media handles seek information about
missing persons and report mutilated bodies found on streets and in hotels.
Some scholars attribute the prevalence to the nations economic decline and increased poverty levels
(Adeyemo, 2022; Salihu et al., 2019), worsened by the pandemic. The profitable business has
attracted large sums, between $2000 to $3000 US dollars (Adeyemo, 2022). Other researchers allude
5
Accessed on the 23rd of April 2023 (see references section for citation)
6
Touch & Follow can be powdery or solid substances used to hypnotize people, typically to make them do
things they would ordinarily not do.
7
Accessed on the 23rd of April 2023 (see references section for citation)
8
Yam festivalsare celebrated to mark the end of the farming/harvest season.
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to political tensions and election cycles (Aghawenu& Baptist Theological Seminary, 2020). I maintain
that concluding on the exacerbating factors is risky because there are no official government records
on illicit organ harvesting, especially for ritual harvesting (Salihu et al., 2019). The difficulty in
connecting the cases to supernatural, diabolic, or magical forces that request the organs in exchange
for wealth may be a reason. Also, sustained impunity has further limited the documentation of such
data.
Irrespective of the lack of systematic data, the point is that we hear and, in some cases, may have
seen victims (dead or alive) of illicit organ harvesting in the past seven years more than in previous
years. It may be attributed to more visibility in the media or the presence of exacerbating factors.
Recent circulated incidents include the February 28th, 2023, case of suspected ritualists who killed
and removed the fetus of an unnamed mentally ill and pregnant woman in Benue State, Nigeria
(Nigeria Watch Database
9
). On March 21st, 2023, in Ondo State, Nigeria, suspected ritualists
murdered an unnamed male driver and mutilated some of his parts (Nigeria Watch Database
10
). Also,
on 9th January 2024, Adebayo Azeez invited Sulaimon Adijat on a date to Sunshine Hotel, Atan Ota
[Ogun State, Nigeria]. She was later taken to Abidemi Moses shrine at the Igbo Olomi area of Atan
Ota in Ogun State, where” Moses and his accomplice killed her, and harvested her “head, breasts,
private part and wrists” (Adesanya, 2024
11
).
While the examples show that illegal organ harvesting cuts across genders, females are primary
targets because body hunters consider them soft prey. Also, “largely because of what was described as
the potency of the breasts, genitals, and bodily fluids in bringing luck and prosperity” (Nwakanma &
Abu, 2020, p. 15449). I argue that the demand for and the illegal extraction of female genitalia and
bodily fluids from the reproductive organs in contemporary Nigeria is gendered. In cases where such
illegal extractions produce death, whether intentional or unintentional, consensual or non-consensual,
it is a Femicide (killing of a female because of her gender). I use Johan Galtungs the Violence
Triangle framework to analyze five reported cases of gender-motivated organ harvesting on social
media, and journal article to emphasize that Femicide goes beyond those who commit direct acts of
violence. It is also structural violence now Feminicide because the state fails to protect its citizens
and is legitimized by cultural violence.
The Violence Triangle as a Framework for Femicide
Galtung exemplified violence as three arms of a triangle: direct, structural, and cultural. Direct
violence includes activities that threaten life or kill or maim individuals, constituting all forms of
violence, such as physical, sexual, emotional, and economic violence. It has direct subjects (the
perpetrator) who commit instant and visible acts and victims who experience it. The subjects are also
identifiable such that we can infer an identity. For example, Man A (wife) raped Woman B (partner),
suspected gangs brutalized Woman A, and suspected ritualists killed and dismembered some
childrens body parts. This violence is criminalized under Nigeria’s laws.
Structures, including institutions, infrastructure, and state actors, characterize social systems. The
state is the central custodian of its citizens rights. Its failure to protect human rights and lackadaisical
attitude after crimes of direct violence are committed produce structural violence, which marginalizes
certain groups of people.
9
Accessed on the 22nd of April 2023 (see references section for citation)
10
Accessed on the 22nd of April 2023 (see references section for citation)
11
Accessed on the 12th of March 2024 (see references section for citation)
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Cultural violence includes “those aspects of culture, the symbolic sphere of our existence
exemplified by religion and ideology, language and arts, empirical science and formal science (logic,
mathematics) that can be used to justify or legitimize direct or structural violence” (Galtung, 1990,
p. 291). I focus on cultural violence, not violent cultures (an entire culture considered as propagating
acts of violence). The legitimization makes “direct and structural violence, look, even feel, right ― or
at least not wrong” (Galtung, 1990, p. 291).
The triangle indicates a causal relationship that can begin and end at any side of the triangle (Galtung,
1990). Unlike direct violence involving defined perpetrators inflicting harm on other individuals,
structural and cultural violence is systemic and thus embedded within systems and beliefs that initiate
or facilitate violence. I use the Violence Triangle framework to analyze five reported cases of gender-
motivated organ harvesting to emphasize that Femicide goes beyond those who commit direct acts of
violence.
3. THE INTRINSIC VALUE OF HER GENITALIA AND FLUIDS FROM HER REPRODUCTIVE
ORGANS
Several scholars have used the Objectification Theory (patriarchal societies that degrade their females
to mere objects) to justify Violence Against Women (VAW), including illegal organ harvesting in
Nigeria (Adeyemo, 2022; Balraj, 2015; Bartky, 2015; Oyidiran&Isiugo, 2005). I argue that it is
cultural exaltation not cultural subordination that makes females primary targets for illegal organ
harvesting, especially for ritual harvesting. I emphasize that Nigerias laws equate gender and sex.
Females are biologically structured to reproduce, and Nigerian cultures have adjugated them with the
exclusive power of not just childbirth but motherhood (the element of nurturing biological and/or
non-biological children). In fact, “the fundamental purpose of womanhood in society is motherhood”
(Nduka & Ozioma, 2019, p. 278). Motherhood in Nigeria holds the supreme symbol of shelter and
solace because when “there is misfortune and sorrow, a man (symbolizing all gender) finds refuge in
his motherland” (Umeh, 1982, p. 1).
Chinua Achebe, the renowned Nigerian author (1958, p. 78) said,
It is true that a child belongs to its father. But when a father beats his child, it seeks sympathy in its
mothers hut. A man belongs to his fatherland when things are good and lifes sweet. But when theres
sorrow and bitterness, he finds refuge in his motherland. Your Mother is there to protect you ... And
that is why we say that Mother is Supreme.
Females are, therefore, not “an object on which society heaps its unfair practices and demands”
(Nnoromele, 2002, p. 182) but the subject in her nurturing roles. In most cases, she is an active
security agent, creatively protecting her offspring with some exceptions.
The Nigerian Mother is esteemed as an epitome of love, comfort, strength, affection, dignity, and a
self-sacrificing persona (Umeh, 1982). These perceived nurturing characteristics make her a soft
target for illicit organ harvesting, not because she is a cultural object and has limited agency, but
because she is perceived to be easily forgiving. In other words, there are likely to be lesser spiritual
repercussions, especially in cases where she is murdered or dies from complications of illegal
harvesting. It is believed that a mother (considered a mother to all) will never go after her own, so her
unhappy ghost will less likely haunt or punish her perpetrators for mutilating her organs.
In 2014, Nigerias Vanguard Newspaper reported that female reproductive organs and fluids are in
higher demand because of their perceived validity for prosperity (Nwakanma & Abu, 2020).
Biological (excluding medical constructions) features exclusive to females (since Nigerias laws
equate sex and gender), such as her reproductive organs (breasts, uterus, vulva, clitoris), products of
her reproductive organs (breast milk, vagina juices, menstrual blood, fetus), and her pubic hairs are
channels to the perceived potency of her nurturing characteristics.
In some cases, there are additional criteria. For example, the potency of her reproductive organs and
fluids may depend on blood ties and relationships. Juju priests may request her reproductive organs
for wealth potions because their customers suckled on her breast (Mother, partner), were delivered
vaginally (biological mother), shared the same womb with her (sisters), or were nurtured by a non-
biological mother. In other instances, her motherly or romantic love (partner) validates the potency of
wealth sacrifices. I emphasize that the examples do not exclusively denote men as the perpetrators and
women as victims. Females have also conspired to extract reproductive organs and fluids from fellow
females illegally. A good instance is the case of Taiwo Olutufese Ajalorun, his wife Salawa Oyenusi,
The Harvester’s Garden: Females as Body Parts in Nigeria
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and six others who kidnaped, killed, and dismembered a 26-year-old mother of two, Oyindamola
Adeyemi on December 28th, 2022 (Guardian Nigeria,
12
2023).
Irrespective of who commits the direct act of killing, the point is that the demand for and illegal
extraction of reproductive organs (vagina, breasts, uterus) and products of the organ (breast milk,
vaginal juices, menstrual blood, fetus), whether through coercion (kidnapping, killing), having sex to
access her vaginal fluids, or stealing her worn panties, is gender-motivated. The cultural exaltation of
Nigerian females as nurturing beings increases the demand for their reproductive organs and fluids
(biological features peculiar to females in Nigeria’s laws) for wealth sacrifices. Similarly, one may
argue that extracting male genitals and fluids (sperm) is gendered because these biological features
are peculiar to men. In such cases where the illegal extraction of male reproductive organs produces
death, it is androcide killing males because of their gender.
4. THE VIOLENCE TRIANGLE FRAMEWORK: CASE ANALYSIS
Case 1, Obi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria: Instagram (guardiannigeria,
13
2022).
At about 11pm on October 21st, 2022,
Some bandits attacked Gidan Ityotyev, a Tiv community in Obi Local Council of Nasarawa State,
killing two persons and injuring scores of others... A resident of Gidan Ityotyev, Mr. Ukpuu Teryila
Abaa, gave names of those killed during Fridays attack including Moses Saaku and Aondofa Saaku.
Abaa said the attackers also chopped off the breast of one of them, Kwaghdoo Saaku.
The story begins with a clear act of direct violence bandits (identifiable subjects) attacked and
killed (verb) some of Gidan Ityotyevs community members (victims). There are real perpetrators, and
one of the attacks is a Femicide because the breast (female biological characteristic) was extracted.
However, if we listen to the silent messages of this act, we will hear the drums of underpinning
structural failures. These attacks are not new in the region. In fact, The Gidan Ityotyev bandit attack
happened barely two weeks after suspected herders attacked Gidan Sule, a Tiv farming community in
Keana Local Council of the same state, killing about ten persons (guardiannigeria, 2022). There are
several questions: Why will citizens hunt down their fellow citizens? What is the government doing to
prevent future attacks? What was the governments response after the attacks?
The President of the Tiv Development Association (TIDA) in Nasarawa, Comrade Peter Ahemba,
blamed the Gidan Ityotyev attack on “a ‘conspiracy of silence fashioned against the Tiv people of the
state by some tribal politicians in Obi and Keana Local Councils” (Guardian Nigeria, 2022). The
government has responded with silence, and it projects a failure of the state to protect its citizens.
Worst off, security operatives (state actors) have not arrested anyone in connection to the attack. It
creates room for impunity to thrive a breakdown of law and order exacerbating structural violence.
While not considered real perpetrators because they do not commit the direct act, state actors are
also perpetrators because of their silence.
This post had 14 comments in 2023. 9 mentioned or discussed structural failures, 1 expressed pity, 1
shock, and 3 had funny comments/emoji. There was no trace of cultural violence in the comments
because there were no perceived cultural justifications to self-blame victims of the attack. For
example, the woman whose breast was harvested was not in her romantic lovers house or alone in the
street at night when the attack happened.
Case 2, Surulere, Lagos State, Nigeria: Instagram (instablog9ja,
14
2022)
A receptionist was attacked by a yet-to-be identified man when he visited her company to submit his
curriculum vitae (CV) for a job. It was gathered that the incident happened on Monday, November 28,
2022 around 2pm at the companys office located at Surulere, Lagos. It is reported that the suspect
walked into the offices complex in search of a job and the receptionist told him there was a vacancy.
She told him to drop his CV, and he did. So, as she was going through his CV, he quickly blew a
powdery substance into the air, and she lost consciousness for a bit. Then, he proceeded to cut off her
nipple. She screamed for help, and he ran but was chased by people who heard her cry for help. The
suspect bolted into a nearby canal and refused to come out until the police operatives came to the
scene and he was subsequently arrested. The lady was rushed to the hospital for medical
12
Accessed on the 22nd of April 2023 (see references section for citation)
13
Accessed on the 22nd of April 2023 (see references section for citation)
14
Accessed on the 22nd of April 2023 (see references section for citation)
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treatment...his family is trying to sweep the case under the carpet, a source familiar with the incident
said.
While it is not stated if the victim survived the attack, such a violent act is a notorious indicator of a
possible Femicide because the perpetrator cut the nipple of the victim (nipples are exclusive to
females under Nigerias laws). In other words, based on the assumption that she received medical
care, it is an attempted Femicide. If she died from direct or indirect (bleeding or other complications
that lead to death) health complications, it is a Femicide.
Though the police (state actors) perform their duty by arresting the suspect, the attack denotes
elements of structural failures. First, there is a high possibility that the illicit organ harvesting was for
an economic purpose (wealth potions or for sale in the Red Market) fueled by unemployment. Also,
the confidence to walk into an office during the daytime to harvest an organ indicates structural
violence because others who had committed similar acts had probably not been arrested or
imprisoned, portraying a lawless society. In addition, his familys efforts to cover up the case depict a
society that has, at least in the past, protected perpetrators.
The post had more than 100 comments in 2023, and commenters condemned the attack. Many pointed
to structural failures like insecurity and poverty. One commenter said the problem is the myth of the
potency of human and animal parts for wealth sacrifices. He said, “Our traditional leaders need to
come out to dispel the myths that human and/or animal parts can make you rich somehow”
(instablog9ja, 2022). Another sums up the concept of cultural violence in Nigeria with this comment,
If it was a lady that went to visit a man, they would say the hookup girl deserves it and start
condemning her. Just like when a girl who dresses so called “indecently” is raped they would say,
why did she wear that? Forgetting that children are raped on a daily basis, and you dont need to do
hookup to be a victim of ritualists. People ignorantly blaming victims and not realizing that people
are who they are regardless of what youre putting on or where you are. Just pray to God to keep you
safe and stop throwing unnecessary blames to what you dont understand (instablog9ja, 2022).
Case 3, Abakaliki, Ebonyi State: WhatsApp Status (Kanyidaily.com,
15
2022)
According to a source, “Ezinne went to see a guy that invited her to a hotel at Presco Junction. Fast
forward to the next day, she was found dead in the hotel room. Her two hands were tied to the back,
her legs were also tied and her face was blindfolded. Her private part was cut off. The culprit is
nowhere to be found but the police are on the matter.” The Police Public Relations Officer in the
state, Loveth Odah, who confirmed the development, said investigations are on to uncover the
circumstances that led to the untimely death of the young lady.
The WhatsApp status that first announced her death had a beautiful picture of the victim with the
inscription, “Still can’t believe you’re gone. U wanna follow big boys, see were it landed you.” A
WhatsApp private chat posted on Kanyidaily.com (2022) showed peoples response to the direct act
of Femicide. One said, “This fine girl just waste for street...Lord have mercy. Girls pls learn to hustle
legit way and stop risking...” Another added, “she wan chill with the big boys nah.”
Instead of focusing on the socioeconomic challenges (structural violence) that motivated the murder,
the commenters used cultural ideologies of a good and bad female to validate and condone the
behavior. The comments devalue the victim because she is perceived to be among the category of
greedy girls who follow rich men (big boys) and loose women who go to hotels. Even suspected
perpetrators are discussed as passive participants, “she wan chill with the big boys,” and she, the
subject, who causes her misfortune by desiring to chill with the big boys. One of the commenters
references to wasting in the streets and learning to hustle legit implied the victim was a commercial
sex worker a job that justifies the consequence of brutal death. I call this mindset Cultural
Femicide.
Case 4: Journal Article (Adeyemo, 2022)
It is challenging to find evidence of consensual illegal harvesting because victims, like I would
argue they are, fear the consequences of confessing. However, it exists and happens every other day in
the Nigerian society. In this section, I emphasize that I focus on informed consent (void of coercion,
manipulation, and exploitation at the time of consent).
15
Accessed on the 22nd of April 2023 (see references section for citation)
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International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Page | 50
I have heard several stories of women consenting to donate their breast milk and vaginal fluids to their
romantic partners for wealth sacrifices to have better lives. It is the effect of love and motivated by
socioeconomic challenges. Though the stories lack empirical evidence, Adeyemo (2022) discusses
another form of consensual illegal organ harvesting in a famous conventional Red Market in Lagos
State, Nigeria.
Some victims whose organs were traded in the market “admitted they consented without any form of
coercion but also expressed deep regret in the aftermath of several medical complications post-
removal and receipt of payment” (Adeyemo, 2022, p. 209). A popular Nigerian response to the
confession will be that the medical complications are a consequence of their decision. The illegal
donors are perceived as perpetrators and victims, what I call self-victims. A missing puzzle from this
popular Nigerian ideology is the undertones of structural failure.
The victims reported consenting because of economic hardship exacerbated by the COVID-19
outbreak (Adeyemo, 2022). Although not evenly distributed, the pandemic was an unexpected
universal disaster with global implications. However, it does not excuse preexisting strained national
services, natural resources, and local infrastructure that have kept a good percentage of Nigerians
below the poverty line. Illegal consensual organ harvesting becomes an adaptation strategy for many.
The illegal consenting donors are, therefore, not self-victims but structural victims because of
structural inequalities. In such cases where the consensual donation of female reproductive organs and
fluid directly leads to her death (such as death from medical complications and biological changes) or
indirectly (biological changes from the harvesting that may have caused or exacerbated other health
conditions leading to death) or whether the death was unintentional (harvesters had not planned for
her to die), it is Structural Femicide. Now, what gender rights activists call Feminicide structural
inequities and the failures of the state and its actors to protect and provide for its citizens that plunge
females into death.
CASE 5: Port Harcourt Rivers State, Nigeria: Instagram (Instablog9ja, 2023)
On 10th October 2023, Collins a suspected yahoo
16
boy slaughtered his girlfriend, Justina Tiffany
Otuene, a Biochemistry student of the University of Port-Harcourt (UNIPORT), Rivers State, Nigeria,
in his house and harvested her eyes and breasts for ritual purposes (Instablog9ja 2023
17
). The victim
was a 300-level (equated to a college ‘junior’ in some parts of the world) biochemistry student at the
University of Port-Harcourt (UNIPORT), Rivers State, Nigeria.
Justinas case is a Femicide because one of the biological formations (breasts) that characterizes her
as femaleunder Nigerias laws was harvested. There is a high tendency to curse the direct
perpetrator, her boyfriend, Collins. True, “Collins is wicked!” Galtung (1990) will categorize
Collinss act as direct violence. However, many, as usual, have blamed the victim for her death.
Some comments on the Instablog9ja (2023) post about Justinas murder include: Ladies will never
learn o...
󱖗󱖘󱖙󱖚󱖛
,and Im sure the victim is one of those women who constantly talks about
standards.Another bragged on Facebook, “Every time a girl is killed by her Yahoo boyfriend, and it
makes rounds on social media,theres this unexplainable joy I feel in my heart that money cannot
buy” (Instablog9ja,
18
2023). Through the comments, Justina is murdered a second time Cultural
Femicide.
I consider numerous hypothetical situations: Justina may have been unaware that Collins was a Yahoo
boy because he was still toasting her (asking her out). That may have been Justinas first visit to
Collinss house. Possibly, Justina knew Collins engaged in illegal activities and continued their
relationship to meet her economic needs. Cultural violence advocates will call it greed. But look
beyond the surface and see perceived greed as the desire to quell economic hardship or the fear of
tasting financial deprivation. The puzzling omission is the contemporary social fabric that either
creates and validates structures promoting economic inequality or equates acceptance and reverence
to wealth. We ignore the foundations while castigating the wrong enemy Justina and every other
female who has been a victim of Cultural Femicide. Justina is a structural violence victim of
strained national services, natural resources, and local infrastructure that have exacerbated poverty
16
Typically, males within 13 40 years who use human parts, fluids, and objects like female panties as
sacrifices for wealth spells and prosperity potions
17
Accessed on the 11th of November 2023 (see references section for citation)
18
Accessed on the 12th of March 2024 (see references section for citation)
The Harvester’s Garden: Females as Body Parts in Nigeria
International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Page | 51
and inequality. Her death is married to cultural, religious, and social institutions that worship wealth
and inculcate attitudes and behaviors that revere material commodities. She is a structural Femicide
victim, representative of the states failure to protect its citizens from harm. Justina is a victim of
weak justice systems that only answer the wealthy and ignore the calls of others.
Conclusion
Festive periods such as Christmas, New Yam Festivals, and other religious and cultural festivals were
perceived as the time frame for body part harvesting. Now, beyond other security threats Nigeria is
grappling with, its citizens live in fear every second of the year because of consistent media
announcements of missing persons and mutilated bodies. Females are prime targets of body hunters
because they are soft targets (Nwakanma & Abu, 2020), and their reproductive organs are believed to
possess intrinsic value for wealth sacrifices. Harvesting her reproductive organs happens in the
domestic/private (home) and public spheres (hotels, streets, places of worship). Therefore, everywhere
is a potential danger zone for her (Ogunlana et al., 2021).
Femicide as a human rights violation is not believed to be widespread in Nigeria because its universal
definition (the intentional killing of a female because of her gender) does not adequately reflect the
social realities of many Nigerian females, especially with the abolition of honor killings in the
country. The paper situates Femicide within an ongoing menace (illicit organ harvesting) in
contemporary Nigeria to prove that the reason for killing a female can be gender-motivated. I first
argue that the demand for and the extraction of female genitalia and bodily fluid from a females
reproductive organs in contemporary Nigeria is gendered. In cases where such illegal extractions
produce death, whether intentional or unintentional, consensual or non-consensual, it is a Femicide.
Then, I use Johan Galtungs Violence Triangle framework to analyze five reported cases of gender-
motivated organ harvesting to emphasize that Femicide goes beyond those who commit direct acts of
violence. It is also structural violence (the failure of the state and its actors to protect its citizens) and
cultural violence (ideologies used to justify direct acts of violence). Thus, with the alarming rate of
illegal organ harvesting in Nigeria (Direct Femicide), the states silence to the menace (Structural
Femicide), and cultural ideologies used to justify direct violence (Cultural Femicide), Femicide is
widespread in Nigeria.
While Nigeria has several laws criminalizing illegal organ harvesting and homicide, the absence of a
Femicide law obscures the social processes leading to her death and the actions and reactions after her
death. There is an urgent need for the state to name the problem by instituting a Femicide law that
incorporates both preventive (examining and addressing the causes of Femicide) and punitive
measures. I recognize that the existence of a law does not necessarily translate into implementation, so
Femicide preventive and responsive budgeting is a step in the right direction. In cases of Femicide,
females are not self-victims
19
,nor are they architects of their misfortune, irrespective of the
circumstance leading to death. Greed in quote (Cultural Femicide) ― choosing to date a wealthy
male is not a justification for her death because many poor males have murdered their female lovers.
Deciding to see a romantic partner she met on Facebook in a hotel (Cultural Femicide) is not a
validation for her murder because several Nigerian relationships and in fact, healthy marriages are
products of social media connections. In other words, there is no hard and fast rule to being a victim.
Nigerians must purge themselves of these ideologies instituted by cultural inscriptions of a good and
bad female.
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AUTHORS BIOGRAPHY
Jessica Ojiugo Chinonye is a Ph.D. student specializing in Disaster and Space
Anthropology at the University of Kentucky, USA.
... Femicide may be driven by stereotyped gender roles, discrimination towards women and girls, unequal power relations between women and men, or harmful social norms." While I agree that misogynistic elements ingrained in culture have plunged females into death, I argue in another article that 'cultural exaltation' rather than 'subordination' has fueled the illegal harvesting of female reproductive organs that have produced femicides in Nigeria (Chinonye, 2024). All Nigerian cultures are not violent, but certain elements tolerate violence against women and girls (Galtung, 1990). ...
... Every other day, the media seeks information about missing Nigerian females and reports that their corpses have been dumped on the streets with their genitalia (a femicide once reproductive organs are extracted) harvested (Chinonye, 2024). Some females die in later months from complications resulting from losing their nipples and breasts to illegal organ harvesters (Chinonye, 2024). ...
... Every other day, the media seeks information about missing Nigerian females and reports that their corpses have been dumped on the streets with their genitalia (a femicide once reproductive organs are extracted) harvested (Chinonye, 2024). Some females die in later months from complications resulting from losing their nipples and breasts to illegal organ harvesters (Chinonye, 2024). In other cases, domestic violence and other forms of violence against females in the public sphere have directly or indirectly murdered females. ...
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