Exorcists make merry of people’s ignorance

A girl in a long black shirt screams incoherently, banging her head against a wall at a shrine in the Pakistani city of Karachi. Sania Haneef’s family says she is possessed by a demon.Doctors could not help, so they brought the college student, kicking and screaming, to be exorcised by the spirit of a saint.Many flock to shrines like the one where Haneef’s relatives seek solace.“Sania has been possessed since she was six years old,” her brother, Mohammed, said, describing how an evil spirit, known as a jinn, would speak through her in a man’s voice.“The shrine has captured the spirit. Sania will be cured soon. None of us is leaving until that happens.”Many people think their suffering is inflicted by evil spirits intent on destroying marriage prospects, businesses and health, and that only saints can help.But that’s a risky belief as Militants, including the Al Qaeda-linked Taliban, have over the years bombed many shrines.“The whole concept of jinns, which previously would have been a belief in some other kind of spirit, has been converted into Islamic parlance,” said Ali Khan, an anthropologist at the Lahore University of Management Sciences.“This is more about a lack of education and awareness, rather than access to medical facilities. It’s a desperate attempt to seek hope,” said psychologist Rizwan Taj.Self-proclaimed exorcists thrive on these beliefs. They claim special powerswhich enable them to help people cope with everything, from domestic disturbances to infertility and impotence.Some even say they can help people find love.A self-proclamed exorcist Aliuddin says he can fight 18,000 types of evil spirits made from fire. Like others in his trade, he is keeping pace with the information age, running his own website and offering consultations by email and mobile phone.Aliuddin  charges between 50 rupees and 250 rupees a session, which last up to 30 minutes.Jamila Bibi turned to the Abdullah Shah Ashabi shrine in the ancient, dusty town of Thatta in Sindh province. Her son, Muhammed, began having violent fits four months ago. The 18-year-old is chained by his ankle to a wall.