The South African government must act urgently to end the dangers faced by people with albinism who face discrimination based on colour, a prohibited ground of racial discrimination, a UN expert said on Friday.
“Although apartheid ended 25 years ago and an inclusive constitution was introduced, people with albinism continue to suffer abuses on a number of grounds including colour and disability,” Ikponwosa Ero said in a statement.
Ero, an expert on the rights of persons with albinism, presented a preliminary statement at the end of her 10-day visit to South Africa.
Stigma and discrimination against people with albinism in South Africa have led to attacks and killings, Ero found during the visit.
Recent victims have been mostly women and children – including Thandizile Mpunzi who was 20 when she was killed in 2015, and a 13-year-old girl killed in 2018.
Both were mutilated and dismembered with their body parts intended for use in ritual practices, according to Ero.
Academic health and genetics surveys estimate a prevalence of around one in 3,900 to one in 4,000 in the country with certain communities having a prevalence rate of one in 832.
Ero welcomed the South African government’s efforts in working toward justice for victims and families but called for more proactive, not just reactive measures.
“For instance, awareness-raising with the participation of genuinely remorseful inmates, while they are serving their sentences, could be a highly effective deterrent,” Ero said.
Trafficking of the body parts of people with albinism across borders also highlights the need for regional action against this scourge, the expert said.
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