AFRICA - Thousands of albinos in hiding in fear for their lives

Nairobi (Agenzia Fides) – Thousands of albinos in Tanzania and Kenya have abandoned their villages for fear of being persecuted and killed, going in the direction of urban areas where they seem to be more secure. According to reports from an activist group for the protection of albinos, in Tanzania there are 7,124 albinos, among whom 3,580 are female. There are killings of albinos reported throughout the Country, because their parts can be sold for thousands of dollars, such as their tongues, ears and noses. Also in Kenya this practice is widespread. In fact, there is the false belief that parts of their bodies have special powers when they are combined with acts of witchcraft. According to the International Federation for the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, between 2007 and 2009, at least 10,000 albinos in Tanzania, Kenya and Burundi left their villages and went into hiding. At a meeting held in Nairobi, they discussed the rights of albinos to safety, health and education. New strategies are urgently needed to reduce this stigma and educate the parents of albino children. Statistics disclosed by the Canadian organization, Under the Same Sun (USS), which deals with the rights and protection of albinos, show that since 2007 in Tanzania 59 albinos have been killed, and 9 brutally mutilated. In Kenya, at least seven were killed, most recently on 24 December. Other deaths were reported in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Guinea, Swaziland and South Africa. However, according to the U.S., many attacks and murders of albinos in Africa are not documented or reported. The bodies of these people are not able to produce melanin, the pigment that helps protect the skin from damage of ultraviolet rays of the sun. (AP) (14/2/2011 Agenzia Fides)