COMBATING WITCHCRAFT BELIEFS BY ACCESSING AND RECONSTRUCTING THE HISTORY OF HEAVY RAINFAL-TRIGGERED LANDSLIDES AND RELATED HAZARDS IN THE BAMUMBU REGION, SOUTH WEST CAMEROON

Witchcraft is strongly believed to be the principal cause of landslides and related hazards by the inhabitants of the Bamumbu region. This is a common phenomenon amongst the rural population of Cameroon and hampers efforts to prevent and mitigate the impact of natural disasters such as; volcanic eruptions, emission of CO2 from lakes, landslides and floods. Sacrifices are offered to the gods to calm agitating lakes, an erupting mountain and fetishes are placed in cracks on the ground with the hope of preventing the occurrence of landslides. The chronology of heavy rainfall triggered landslides from 1954 to 2003 in the Bamumbu region is constructed from field reconnaissance, eyewitness accounts, partial rainfall data and one technical report. Field measurements show that the landslide sites have very steep slopes (15-85degrees), thin soil cover and most have been affected by anthropogenic impacts such as deforestation and farming along slopes. Prolonged rainfall at the peak of the rainy season (August 278.8mm and September 335.9mm) is the main triggering mechanism of the landslides. Debris from the landslides is washed into river Meyi the main river that drains the area, causing it to flood its banks and to change its course. Landslides and related hazards have destroyed numerous bridges, houses, more than 150 lives have been lost, thousands left homeless, palm, cocoa, and coffee plantations have been destroyed. How can the inhabitants of this area be enlightened so that the loss of lives and destruction of property be prevented? This goal can only be achieved through education. Therefore we are going to disseminate the results of this research to the rural population in this area, through, fliers, the radio and an awareness conference.