European woman killed for witchcraft 200 years ago pardoned ~ about time or empty symbolism?

Question

The Swiss canton of Glarus has pardoned a woman executed as a witch 200 years ago.

The woman, Anna Goeldi was a maidservant in the house of a local magistrate. Sacked, she threatened to reveal her love affair with him. As adultery was then a crime, her former employer stood to lose everything. He silenced her by accusing her of witchcraft.

Goeldi was hung by her thumbs with rocks tied to her feet and questioned continually until she confessed. When the torture stopped, she withdrew her confession, but was tortured until she confessed a second time.

Finally, she was publicly beheaded in the town square.

The 'pardon' has been controversial, even necessitating consultation with churches.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/7003128.stm

Amazingly in 2008, 'witches', mostly women, are still being murdered:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7415502.stm

http://nightlight.typepad.com/nightlight/2008/05/somewhere-today.html

Why?

Answer 1

that pardon is too little, too late huh?

Answer 2

It's the principle that is important. As a pagan today there is stil so much sterotyping about withces which is unfair and compltely wrong.

Answer 3

Pardoning her now isn't going to undo the torture she went through nor the fact that she was never able to live her natural life...........

When will extremists understand, a spell is much like a prayer just preformed in a different manner!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 4

hey thing haven't time to read links tonight but what motivated the pardon at this time? x x.

Answer 5

Are you suggesting that adultery ISNT a crime now?

Answer 6

Hey!  The church recently pardoned Copernicus and Galileo too!

Nothing like showing up at the game a few hundred years too late, eh?  And now they're approving belief in aliens!  'Our intergalactic brethren,' is the official language used, I believe.

Can you smell the sarcasm cookies ol' Josh is a-bakin'?  I think ya do!

Answer 7

I would keep quiet if I were you, you could be next!

*You're welcome, I thought I'd better point that out :-D

Answer 8

This is great news and thank you for bringing it to our attention. It may've been 200 years ago but that doesn't matter. It's an age old issue, modernly relevant still, that people will use any power that they have to conceal their tracks against a weaker person.

Truth and justice is triumphant and we should all be grateful for humane wisdom (what is wrong with people here???)

Humans will always manipulate popular opinion to their own favour if they are guilty and have a lot to lose. In those days it was convenient to accuse a jilted lover of witchcraft to get her out of the picture.

These days you could just accuse her of being a terrorist or drug dealer. Same game - what's the difference? (except that women now could play that game too) There are a number of things that I could accuse my disgusting ex of, which would give me instant sympathy points, if push came to shove.

May that poor woman's soul rest in peace and her ghost no longer wander, if it had.

Answer 9

Empty symbolism-utterly meaningless.You can't "undoo" the past.

Answer 10

Well, the pardon certainly isn't going to help her, is it?

Answer 11

This was a very late case of witchcraft, it must have been one of the last in Europe I should think. It's very interesting, but I don't see that there is anything that the modern Swiss can do about it, it was over 200 years ago after all.

The article is mistaken in describing witch hunts as 'medieval' though, the main period of witch hunting in Europe was 1450-1750, with the peak period being in the 1580s-1620s, the era of the so-called 'Renaissance' or early modern period.  Witchcraft was not a big issue in medieval times, compared to what it became later.  And even if a person was accused of witchcraft, it was quite difficult to secure a conviction, overall about 50% of those accused of witchcraft were acquitted.

The reason why people are still accused of witchcraft is that people still look for scapegoats to blame for their misfortunes, and in some places that is still witches.  Even in Europe, it was quite common well into the twentieth century for people to be suspected of witchcraft.  And people who were considered to have powers for good, 'cunning men' and 'wise women' as they were known, likewise continued to be respected and consulted right into the twentieth century.

In Europe we tend to look for other scapegoats to blame for our ills now, smokers, global warming etc, but in tribal Africa there are still people accused of witchcraft who fill this function.

Answer 12

Meaningless and I'm actually a little irritated by it..

They don't need to "pardon" someone who was jailed and tortured and murdered 226 years ago by the state and church for a crime that does not exist. They need to make public what happened as an example of abuse of power and preversion of justice with the collaboration of the authorities.

And they are actually. The whole pardon thing adds publicity but misleads by focusing on Anna Goeldi personally and not the system that wronged her. But maybe many people in Glarus don't like to think of that.

Re the Affrican witch hunts today, I'm amazed how people just don't get it.

These atrocities are taking place in communities in crisis that are patriarchial with tense power politics and many people on the edge for surviving every day.

Going after someone who is a convienent focus for hatred and who can't fight back and who may have something worth taking is very tempting for the local leaders and wannabe leaders.

Sound familiar?

It really doesn't take a doctorate to figure it out.

Edit: " I would keep quiet if I were you, you could be next! "

Please don't report Johno! I think that comment revealing. (and the ratings it gets)

Edit2: wasn't thinking you reporting, Thing. I was asking in general.

Answer 13

They don't need to "pardon" someone who was jailed and tortured and murdered 226 years ago by the state and church for a crime that does not exist. They need to make public what happened as an example of abuse of power and preversion of justice with the collaboration of the authorities.

And they are actually. The whole pardon thing adds publicity but misleads by focusing on Anna Goeldi personally and not the system that wronged her. But maybe many people in Glarus don't like to think of that.

Re the Affrican witch hunts today, I'm amazed how people just don't get it.

These atrocities are taking place in communities in crisis that are patriarchial with tense power politics and many people on the edge for surviving every day.

Going after someone who is a convienent focus for hatred and who can't fight back and who may have something worth taking is very tempting for the local leaders and wannabe leaders.

Sound familiar?

It really doesn't take a doctorate to figure it out.

Edit: " I would keep quiet if I were you, you could be next! "

Please don't report Johno! I think that comment revealing. (and the ratings it gets)

Edit2: wasn't thinking you reporting, Thing. I was asking in general.