SakawaRituals and Cyberfraud in Ghanaian Popular Video Movies

Abstract

Sakawa indexes a cyberfraud practice in Ghana allegedly linked with occult rituals. This article examines the phenomenon as an analytically relevant example of a material understanding of religion. It then offers a critical reading of a popular sakawa video series and contrasts its thematic perspectives with the reactions of some Ghanaian political leaders to the possible motivations for the practice. This critical approach is conceived as a response to the persistent myopic view of such popular genres as irrelevant to key debates around problematic Ghanaian issues and also to calls in global media studies to de-Westernize the field.Résumé: Les rituels Sakawa indiquent une pratique de la cyber-fraude au Ghana qui serait liée à des rituels occultes. Cet article examine le phénomène comme un exemple analytique pertinent d'une interprétation matérielle de la religion. Il propose ensuite une lecture critique de la série populaire vidéo appelée Sakawa et contraste ses perspectives thématiques avec les réactions de certains dirigeants politiques ghanéens aux motivations possibles pour cette pratique. Cette approche critique est conçue comme une réponse à la perspective myope persistante que ces genres populaires ne sont pas pertinents pour les débats sur les problématiques ghanéennes, et aussi comme une réponse aux incitations des études sur les médias globaux à désoccidentaliser le domaine de recherche.

Browsers and phone girls: the intricate socialities of friendship, trust and cyberlove in Nima (Accra)

“… 3 Internet fraud is commonly referred to as sakawa , but sakawa is a very specific techno-religious mode of fraud that involves spiritual power and that, though very popular nowadays, is beyond the scope of this paper (see Burrell 2012; Warner 2011; Oduro-Frimpong 2014). …”

Adwenhoasem: an Akan theory of mind

“…Here, unsuspecting individuals are said to be temporarily controlled by evil forces, which prevent them from engaging with the world normally, and make them susceptible to being duped by criminals: for example, through email scams. In such cases, evil‐minded individuals reportedly seek spiritual help (from local deities via shrines) in order to gain the ability to exert the temporary mind control (Oduro‐Frimpong 2014). In none of these cases do the victims willingly give up the control of their adwen .…”

Desagregando a mediação: tecnologias e atmosferas religiosas

“…Em um tom mais espiritual, o profeta Ato celebrava que a internet havia "agilizado" a sua relação com o Espírito, já que agora ele podia ir a um internet café e usar concordâncias bíblicas on-line para interpretar sonhos e visões. Mas ele também me alertou sobre "demônios da internet" que têm se proliferado no meio digital e usado de vários subterfúgios para atacar, do "espírito da masturbação" aos ciber-crimes ocultos conhecidos em Gana como sakawa (Oduro-Frimpong 2014).…”