UN expert to investigate attacks on people with albinism in Tanzania
In some traditional communities of Tanzania and other countries in Africa, albinos are thought to have magical properties, and their body parts can fetch thousands of dollars on the black market as ingredients in witch doctors' potions.
Albinism affects approximately one in 20,000 people worldwide and is more common in Sub-Saharan Africa, where it affects one in every 1,400 Tanzanians.
The United Nations is investigating attacks on people with albinism in Tanzania, where at least 76 people have been killed during the past ten years.
The world body's independent expert on rights for people with albinism is touring the country, which has been one of the worst places in the world for the crime.
Albinism is a condition that leaves its afflicted with little or no pigment in their skin or eyes.
In some traditional communities of Tanzania and other countries in Africa, albinos, as they're often called, are thought to have magical properties, and their body parts can fetch thousands of dollars on the black market as ingredients in witch doctors' potions said to give the user wealth and good luck.
TRT World's Lucy Taylor reports.
Copyright © 2024 TRT World.