Albinos deserve to live a full life just like you and me

A day after launching a 140 MW geothermal power plant, President Paul Kagame and his host President Uhuru Kenyatta were joined by Yoweri Museveni, Jakaya Kikwete, Pierre Nkurunziza and South Sudan’s Salva Kiir. The occasion was the 16th East African Community Heads of State Summit. At the summit, Uhuru Kenyatta handed over the chairmanship of the bloc to Tanzania’s Jakaya Kikwete who pledged to push for further integration by pushing for the removal of the remaining Non Trade Barriers that continue to hinder trade among EAC members. Trade remains a key element of the EAC integration process. I have noticed that whenever our leaders meet only big issues that affect all member states are discussed such as infrastructure projects and the fight against terrorism. However, sometimes I feel like each leader should also be allowed to mention a problem they have at home and it too is discussed almost like they do in those Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings. In the AA meetings, members start by admitting they have a problem with the usual, “Hi, my name is X and I am an alcoholic…” I thought of this ritual when I read about the heartbreaking story of Yohana Bahati a one year old child who went missing for a few days only to be found dead with his limbs hacked off. Bahati is a common Swahili name that means luck yet this little boy was not so lucky to live much longer because some people saw him only as a commodity worth so much. Bahati’s crime was being born with albinism in Tanzania. Albinism is a hereditary genetic condition that causes loss of pigmentation in the skin, hair and eyes. In Tanzania the stigma against albinos is completed by the greed of superstitious people who are made to believe that the body parts of albinos make powerful charms for luck and wealth. Bahati’s sad demise comes about a month after the Tanzanian government had announced a ban on witch doctors with the aim of curbing this heinous crime. Over 70 albinos have been killed over the recent years with several others surviving attacks and having to live with missing limbs and trauma. Even when they die of other causes, their graves are often opened in search of their body parts. The case of Bahati has outraged many people who believe that the Tanzanian government is simply not doing enough to curb this problem. While the killers and the witch doctors maybe apprehended, the buyers of these body parts or precisely their clients are never mentioned. It is an election year in Tanzania and this issue may not garner enough traction as the politicians may see it as a minority issue. However the fact that the country’s image is dragged down the drain by these acts, means that it is really not a minority issue to ignore but a national concern. Tanzanians did express their outrage using different social media platforms with #StopAlbinoKillings trending alongside #MimiNitakulinda, a vow to condemn and protect albinos from this savagery. On March 2, the Tanzania Albino Association together with other well-wishers including some politicians like Hon. Zitto Kabwe are already organising a peaceful march in Dar es Salaam in solidarity of the albinos that continue to live in fear. The grand public statements by political leaders have been made several times before but the problem continues to thrive. Something more needs to be done for people to know that albinos are actually just like you and me, and killing them is simply primitive energy that has no place in today’s world. It is a shame that when some Tanzanians were tweeting #StopAlbinoKillings, those in other EAC countries seemed to be less concerned. By the way there have been cases of albinos attacked and killed in neighbouring Kenya so their body parts can sold in Tanzania. As a community I think we should always stand up for what is right even if it is not in our neighbourhood because we are after all human. East Africa shouldn’t be that place where we talk about how despicable it is to kill elephants for their tasks yet we have people who visit almost similar savagery to fellow human beings. Just like the way terror attacks in Kenya give the whole EAC a bad name, so do the albino murders. We failed Bahati but we other Bahati’s deserve to feel as safe as you and me. Rest in peace Yohana Bahati.

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Albinos deserve to live a full life just like you and me