Radio New Zealand - Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa

Papua New Guinea's Constitutional Review and Law Commission has been traveling the country in recent months hearing submissions on the vexed issue of witch burnings.

Over the last year alone there's been more than 50 cases of sorcery related killings in the Eastern Highlands and Chimbu provinces of the country.

And the belief in spirits and the spirit world isn't limited to traditional societies. In New Zealand mediums and psychics regularly advertise in our newspapers and there doesn't appear to be any shortage of customers.

This week on Ideas we hear about Papua New Guinea's so-called witches, talk to the president of the New Zealand Psychics Association about communicating with the dead, and hear from Professor Paul Morris about the history of witchcraft and sorcery in the Western tradition.

Guests:

John Himugo is an ethnographer at the Institute of Papua New Guinea Studies in Port Morseby.

NZ Psychics Association president Marie Vaughan.

Victoria University Professor Paul Morris.