A 3-year-old girl died in what appeared to be an exorcism ritual conducted by her own parents and other family members.

Police told reporters they received a distress call from an uncle of the little girl. The uncle came to offer dinner but was pushed away, and he saw signs his relatives may be on to something related to paranormal activities. When police raided the house in Bukit Mertajam (280 kilometres north of Kuala Lumpur), they saw the ritual in progress.

The raiding team said the room was dark and chanting could be heard from under a blanket covering a group of people. The little girl was then found at the bottom of a human pile consisting of family members.

The girl's parents, grandmother, uncle, aunt, two cousins and their Indonesian maid were found lying on top of the girl during what appeared to be a ritual. The family members, aged between 16 and 67, were all arrested for subsequent investigation.

The family members were brought to court and remanded until Aug 12. The girl's mother, who is three months pregnant, did not show up in court. She was admitted to the Bukit Mertajam Hospital, although details are unclear whether it was an emergency situation.

A woman believed to be the girl's aunt was seen moving her lips and swinging her hands in what seemed to be another ritual during the court proceedings, news.asiaone.com reported.

Central Seberang Prai OCPD Asst Comm Azman Abd Lah said the child, who was ethnic Chinese, died of suffocation.

Meanwhile, in Haiti, four children from the same family were found dead after being treated by a witch doctor last week.

Three young girls and a little boy were subjected to the rituals of a "sorcerer" who reportedly convinced the victims' mother that her children were possessed by a demon.

"They suffered abuse from the healer who was treating them," said Wilfrid Brisson, an official from the southern town of Marbial.

The children died after the "treatment" and were abandoned in their mother's bed.