AFRICA/SOUTH AFRICA - A Catholic South African, killed for his opposition to witchcraft, could become the country's first saint

Cape Town (Agenzia Fides) – He gave his life to bear witness to the truth, working against the false beliefs, and this is why his cause for beatification is now underway. His name is Servant of God Benedict Daswa, whose cause for beatification was recently completed in its diocesan phase, in the Diocese of Tzaneen.
His documentation was presented to Archbishop James Patrick Green, Apostolic Nuncio in South Africa, to be sent on to Archbishop Angelo Amato, Prefect for the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. The documentation, a total of 850 pages, is the result of 5 years of research and interviews with witnesses considered credible on the part of the diocesan authorities. The records will not be published until the Congregation for the Causes of Saints appoints a Roman Postulator to proceed to the next phase, in which holy cards of the Servant of God will be made and a novena composed, to allow the public to pray to him and ask for his intercession.
In the meantime, a brief biography and DVD (film) will be produced, to spread the story of the life and work of Servant of God Benedict Daswa in South Africa and in other African nations, as a model for all people and great witness to the faith.
According to a biographical note published by the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference, Benedict grew up in a traditional family that belonged to the small tribe of the Lemba, who live mainly in the town of Venda, in the province of Limpopo. He converted to Catholicism while he was studying to be a schoolteacher.
Benedict soon realized that witchcraft went against the Catholic faith. From that moment, in both is private and public life, he took a strong stance against the practice, affirming that these beliefs had been the cause of death of innocent people unjustly accused of practicing it.
Benedict also fought against the use of false medicines and charms for protection from the evil eye, and spread the practice of sports and other activities. On February 2, 1990, just days after having refused to pay a tax for the realization of a rite intended to expel several “witches,” he was attacked and beaten to death with stones and clubs. He was only four months away from his 44th birthday. (LM) (Agenzia Fides 16/7/2009)