By Abdool A. Aziz

AT 18:00hrs a commotion took place in a house on the De Kinderen sugar plantation which was rumoured to be a burial site of the Dutch plantation owners of the 1800s. Evidence was common of the deceased patrolling the plantation and possessing the living. I hurried across the street to enquire what was wrong. I was kept at bay. The entire family stood outside, alarmed at the uncontrollable behaviour of their eldest daughter. She was a very quiet individual who hardly spoke, now she was letting out profanities at her religious parents. She tried to pull out her hair, cut herself and scatter all the wares.

A few neighbours tried to restrain her but were tossed about like a rag doll. Her body got swollen and she developed a strength like Hercules. I was amazed and scared at the same time. Then it all came to an end and the victim asked “What all you staring at? Who tumbled my kitchen? What’s going on?” The spectators were aghast. She didn’t know about her mad behaviour or was she a good trickster? Anyway, we were glad normalcy returned.
The next day at the same time there was a repeat. She began to vomit and spoke in tongues. No one could go close to her. The gag of men tried to calm her down by wrapping chains around her body. She broke them loose. She was like a bulldozer. I knew her well and tried to talk to her. I was hurled out the door. Now many curious neighbours came to see this weird display from a virtuous lady. An old lady, the high priestess of Obeah came one evening to assess the drama. She barked “Dutchman hold she. Go fo de Jukka man!”
The possessed lady let out a scream.

“Yeh,Yeh, go for De Jukka Man. Leh he come ah gon deal wid he go fo he!” She rushed at the woman in rage. “You want to tek me out?”

The priestess fled and the strange antics continued night after night drawing onlookers.
Her parents tried to exorcise the spirit by different means – no luck. They brought the Jukka man. He set up his ‘Laboratory’ during the day and waited. Promptly at 18:00hrs, the spirit took control.

“So you tink you can shake me? Pack up and leave before I crush you!”

Then she laughed and spat blood. She grabbed the ‘wuk man’. The guy was burly yet he stood in her arms like a matchstick. She dropped him like a stone. “Go your way before I choke you to death!”

The fellow ran to the door and he began to speak in Dutch. The possessed spoke back in Dutch in anger. Later translations revealed that the victim had thrown urine on his grave just below the back step. This insulted and desecrated his clean tomb. He would only exit her if a promise was made to desist from this nasty act. The Jukka gave that promise and suddenly a gust of wind and the odour permeated the kitchen. The lady dropped like an empty sack. She was free of the spirit. It was astounding. The victim cleaned up her mess and lived healthily and happily for years, and she remembers nothing. But I saw it all and was scared. She is my sister- now 80- and she carries the name ‘Dutch Lady’ which she questions all the time. Keep clean the Dutch graves. Good people live there.