Woman Accused Of Witchraft, Burned To Death By Community Members In New Guinea

Papau, New Guinea (AHN) - A young woman from Papau, New Guinea was accused of witchcraft, doused in gasoline and burned to death in a remote area of the country.

Witnesses reportedly say that the woman, who was between the ages of 16 and 20, was accused of witchcraft, was stripped naked, gagged so she couldn't scream, tied to a pole placed on top of a pyre of car tires and firewood at a garbage dump, doused in gasoline and burned alive.

Police reportedly think she had been accused of being a witch or blamed for infecting one of her killers with HIV/Aids. In remote jungle Highlands areas of the country, the death penalty is meted out for those things by members of indigenous communities living there.

Belief in witchcraft is widespread in the region.