Transmogrified Religious Systems and the Phenomenon of Sex Trafficking among the Benin People of Southern Nigeria

Abstract

This paper examines the changing roles of traditional religious institution in a renowned West African kingdom of Benin, in Nigeria and highlights how religious institutions have been transmogrified to support the pervasiveness of sex trafficking in the region. It relies on ethnographic data generated though key informant interviews, participant observation and focus group discussions. Secondary data provided additional insight into the phenomenon under interrogation. The study revealed that religious institutions in the region have continued to sustain patriarchal domination culminating in gender inequality, which is a major cause of sex trafficking in the region. It identifies that existing traditional and Christian religion tended to give prominence and spiritual recognition to those who become rich even through chary avenues, thereby creating a prestige structure within the society, which many youths strive to attain. Moreover, prescribed religious sanctions against sexual taboos among women of this extraction have become weakened owing to the financial benefits inherent in transactional trade, thereby compromising religious admonitions of sexual purity associated with both traditional and Christian religion. The paper concluded that religious leaders are principal actors that need to be targeted in the efforts geared towards mitigating the phenomenon of sex trafficking in the region.