Tanzanian rights groups alarmed over albino attacks
Albinism, caused by a lack of melanin, the pigment that colours skin, hair and eyes, is a genetic condition that affects hundreds of thousands of people worldwide, especially in Africa
What you need to know:
- Under The Same Sun, a Canada-based charity working to combat discrimination, has been logging cases of similar violence across Africa.
- In one case, a 50-year-old called Joseph Mathias died after being attacked while sleeping earlier this month by men who cut off his right arm.
Three rights groups on Monday asked Tanzania to take action after an surge in attacks on albinos, whose limbs are used in occult practices believed to bring wealth and power.
They said attacks on albinos declined sharply in 2019 although there was an increase in their bodies and skeletons being exhumed from graves and the bones traded.
This year, attacks on albinos have increased, they warned.
In one case, a 50-year-old called Joseph Mathias died after being attacked while sleeping earlier this month by men who cut off his right arm.
"We ask the police to make sure all people involved in these incidents are arrested and taken to court," the Legal and Human Rights Centre said in a joint statement with the Tanzania Albinism Society and the Tanzania Human Rights Defenders Coalition.
"We also want the investigations of these incidents to be expanded to the people like traditional healers who are involved in the black market of parts of albinos."
Albinism, caused by a lack of melanin, the pigment that colours skin, hair and eyes, is a genetic condition that affects hundreds of thousands of people worldwide, especially in Africa.
Under The Same Sun, a Canada-based charity working to combat discrimination, has been logging cases of similar violence across Africa.
It ranks Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania as the countries where such attacks are most prevalent.
