A University of Sussex DPhil thesis Available online via Sussex Research Online: http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/ This thesis is protected by copyright which belongs to the author. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the Author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the Author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Please visit Sussex Research Online for more information and further details ‘Wives of the Gods’: Debating Fiasidi and the Politics of Meaning Julie A. Jenkins Doctor of Philosophy in Social Anthropology University of Sussex January 2012 I hereby declare that this thesis has not been and will not be submitted in whole or in part to another University for the award of any other degree. _____________________________ _________________________ Julie A. Jenkins Date ii ‘Wives of the Gods’: Debating Fiasidi and the Politics of Meaning In the south-eastern Volta Region of Ghana, a form of female religious affiliation to local shrines commonly known as trokosi, has been the subject of a campaign consisting of Christian-based NGOs and various government agencies that has successfully criminalised the practice and organised ‘liberations’ and rehabilitations of the initiates. Protagonists of the abolition campaign argue that trokosiwo are illegitimately initiated to specific shrines based on an offence committed by another lineage member, acting as a perpetual figure of restitution. They also argue that the practice constitutes a form of ‘female ritual slavery’ by translating the term trokosi as “slave of the gods” and arguing that the socio-economic status and social relations of the trokosiwo indicate their ‘slavery’. The highly publicised abolition campaign stimulated a counter-campaign, led by a neo-traditional organisation, that argued that the female shrine initiates are Queen-Mothers (rather than slaves), role-models to their lineage (rather than figures of restitution), and are socially privileged. Central to these contestations has been the figure of the fiasidi, particularly those initiated to shrines in one locality, Klikor. Abolitionists define fiasidiwo as being a variant of trokosi, despite some key differences. Those that contest this representation justified their position by highlighting the socio-economic position of fiasidiwo in Klikor's three shrines and pointing out the critical ways it differed from the representation of the Trokosi Slave. Members of the Klikor shrines also became political actors in the debates that ensued, by developing a close alliance to the neo- traditionalist organisation and creating their own organisation to network with similar shrines. This thesis considers the debates around trokosi and fiasidi at the national level and explores in detail the meaning attached to fiasidi and her position in the Klikor shrines and community. At its core, is an ethnography of the three shrines, their ritual specialists and initiates. I explore the way in which meaning is ascribed to the fiasidi, through narratives of the past, through the symbolism of key rituals and through the structured interactions between petitioners and ritual specialists. A concluding section then considers the intersection between these meanings and the contested terrains of religion in the debates about the Trokosi Slaves. iii Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction ................................................................................................... 1 Setting the Scene .............................................................................................................. 1 The Research .................................................................................................................... 4 Re-evaluating the research questions .......................................................................... 12 ‘Communities of Interpretation’ .................................................................................... 15 Overview of the Thesis .................................................................................................. 23 Section 1: Setting the Scene: The Trokosi Controversy Chapter 2: Abolishing Trokosi: from Local to National to International ................. 26 The North Tongu ‘Vestal Virgins Project’ (1988-1993) ................................................ 26 From North Tongu to the National Sphere (1993-1996) ............................................... 31 ‘Liberations’, International Support, and Criminalisation (1996-1998) ........................ 35 After Criminalisation (1999 onwards) ........................................................................... 37 Conclusion...................................................................................................................... 43 Chapter 3: Representing Trokosi to Debating Fiasidi .................................................. 47 District Seminars to the National Workshop (1994-1996) ............................................ 48 Responses from the Campaign: The Academics ............................................................ 52 Criminalisation and the Mobilisation of the ARM (1996 onwards) ............................. 56 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 63 Section 2: The Klikor Adzima Shrines and the Fiasidi Chapter 4: Klikor and the Adzima Shrines ................................................................. 66 The Klikor Traditional Area ........................................................................................... 68 Klikortↄ or Anlo? ........................................................................................................ 68 Overview of Klikor ..................................................................................................... 71 Klikor, a Place of Deities ............................................................................................ 77 Deities: Cosmologies, Shrines, and Persons ................................................................. 81 The Adzima Deities and the Shrine Complex ............................................................ 85 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 94 Chapter 5: Narratives of the Past: War, Slavery, and Fiasidi ................................... 97 Narratives of War: Protection and Relations ................................................................ 99 Adzima, the Anlo, and the Some ................................................................................ 99 “The Warriors will get strength” .............................................................................. 106 Relations with Neigbouring Communities and Initiates ........................................... 111 Adzima and Slavery: Protection and Wealth .............................................................. 114 Overview of the History of the Slave Trade ............................................................. 114 The Adzima Shrines and the Slave Markets of Klikor ............................................. 119 Protection, Wealth, and Initiates ............................................................................... 121 Performing Slavery: The Gowu ............................................................................... 123 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 129 Chapter 6: The Work of the Adzima Deities ............................................................. 131 The Adzima Shrines: An Overview ............................................................................. 132 A Day in the Shrine: The Case of Yaa and Adzo ....................................................... 134 iv Danger and Protection: Personhood, Well-Being, and Divinations ............................ 136 Dangers and Ambivalences in Social Relations ........................................................... 138 Adzetɔ, Kinship, and Wealth .................................................................................... 140 Dzoka, Kidnappings, and Wealth ............................................................................. 142 “Togbui, Save Me” ................................................................................................... 143 Deities as Dangerous .................................................................................................... 145 ‘Beating the enemies’ and ‘being on the straight path’ ........................................... 145 Fiasidi & ‘Closing the Door’: ‘get a blue cloth and add it to a young girl’ ............ 149 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 151 Chapter 7: Initiations: Wives of the Deity, Grandmothers of the Family ............. 153 Initiations: An Overview ............................................................................................. 154 The Gatete .................................................................................................................... 155 Symbols of Marriage ................................................................................................ 159