Sorcery a serious threat to Egypt: psychiatrist

A Prominent Egyptian psychiatrist warned of the growing threat of superstition among Egyptians and celebrities and said it posed a threat to the country's national security.

Consultant psychiatrist and marriage counselor Dr. Khalil Fadel said a high percentage of Egyptians spend huge amounts of money every year on sorcery and superstition, especially after the rate of depression has remarkably risen in recent years.

"Many of the patients who frequent my clinic have already been to sorcerers before," he told Al Arabiya. "Most of them are educated and intellectuals and even Ph.D. holders."

Fadel argued people in oriental societies think psychiatrist patients have to be either insane or drug addicts and therefore they resort to sorcery to avoid the stigma of psychiatric help.

"I once treated a girl who has been suffering from focus deficiency for a while and sorcerers failed to treat her. Finally, her sister brought her to my clinic and now she is totally cured."

Another case, Fadel added, was that of a wife whose husband was driving her crazy and made her think she was possessed by demons.

Even Egyptian celebrities and intellectuals resort to sorcery because it gives them psychological relief, said Dr. Azza Karim, professor of sociology at the National Center for Social and Criminological Research.

I once treated a girl who had been suffering from focus deficiency for a while and sorcerers failed to treat her. Finally, her sister brought her to my clinic and now she is totally cured

Consultant psychiatrist and marriage counselor Dr. Khalil Fadel

"They all think that only the crazy go to psychiatrists," she told Al Arabiya. "They confuse psychiatric disorders with mental diseases."

According to Fadel, resorting to sorcery is also a phenomenon in working class districts where people are desperate and do not have an alternative.

"Even those who believe in medicine are deceived since many sorcerers convince them that they are working with doctors."

Fadel warned of the consequences of avoiding medical solutions for superstition and stressed that it is a matter of national security.

"Egypt's national security is threatened. The psychology of Egyptians is a matter of national security."

However, Fadel stated that other countries in the region are more known for extensive use of sorcery like Morocco, Sudan, and Oman.

Egypt's national security is threatened. The psychology of Egyptians is a matter of national security

Fadel

Prosecuted

Many cases of sorcery have been reported to the police and are currently being investigated, said prosecutor Mohamed Mortada.

"Sorcerers are prosecuted for swindling and fraud," he told Al Arabiya. "They could be jailed for up to three years."

The problem, Mortada added, is that many sorcerers reach a settlement with the victims and the case is dropped altogether.

Mortada agreed with Fadel that Egyptians spend too much money on sorcery and that this increases with the increase in the number of sorcerers.

"There is almost a sorcerer for every citizen," he concluded.

(Translated from Arabic by Sonia Farid).

They all think that only the crazy go to psychiatrists

Dr. Azza Karim