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Various privileged witnesses of the police referred to their initial difficulty andtheir scepticism when faced with this situation w<strong>here</strong>by the increase of knowledgewas transformed into the understanding of being faced with an extremely bindingmechanism, for which, independently from the project of life that the victim hadfrom the start she remains trapped.The tie is so strong not only because of the terrible risk of falling into disgraceand in ills at psycho-physical level, but also for its significance on the level ofrelations with the family and with the community. From accounts gat<strong>here</strong>d t<strong>here</strong>appears to be in fact a great importance attached to the assumption of the promiseto the community: the rite does not only tie on the magic-religious level, but alsoties on the social level, and, not respecting it, constitutes an element of dishonourin front of the entire community.In addition the belief that someone possesses part of the body of another is awell rooted belief and t<strong>here</strong>fore occupies a position of supremacy.“You are tied to them, you are tied to this oath, you are obliged to respect it.And t<strong>here</strong> are those who, I don’t know how to explain it, those who command youbecause this oath exists. They must command you, control you, and you areobliged to respect it” (Interview Victim No.7).In the interview made with a psychologist, who since many years has worked ina community which takes in Nigerian victims, this aspect has been carefullystudied. For the Nigerian girls: “The contract is a language based on signs, onagreements of words, on a faith mediated by words (…) the Nigerians still play onthis: the word is the most important thing. The wodoo sign according to me is onlyan ulterior sanction, because the bargaining is at the beginning. We, with ourwestern mentality have perhaps stopped at the concrete sign, wodoo, but the pactis pre-existing” (On the Road Association - Martinscuro).One of the reasons for which it is so difficult for the Nigerian girls to escape theconditions of the pact, resides t<strong>here</strong>fore also in the sentiment of loyalty to their owncommunity, which was sealed by a solemn promise, which morally binds, of whichwodoo is only the formal dressing.Not by chance, under the psychological profile, the sense of treachery towardsthe community of belonging is the most difficult to fight for victims who considerthe possibility of flight. This, as will be seen in Chapter VI, is one of the aspectswhich makes difficult accompanying the victims towards a new life.According to the opinion of some of the police, the level of subjection in part istied to the social extraction and cultural level: in some cases - which however arereferred as being isolated and sporadic - a good cultural level, together with astrong Christian religious faith, has enabled the victims to liberate themselves, evenquickly, from the fear provoked by wodoo rites. On the magic level the strength ofa faith in God acts by cancelling the powers of the rite and those who officiates it.On the level of formal undertaking, Catholic morale guarantees the maintenance ofthe undertaking made.“As he knows that I am a person who lives in my little honesty. I grew up in aChristian family who is afraid of God and he knows that I cannot say that I cannot

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