CONSTITUTIONAL COMMENTARY AND EVENTS

On 18 November 2014, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly adopted a resolution which set aside 13 June as International Albinism Awareness Day. This resolution served to affirm the need to advocate more fiercely for the rights of persons with albinism (PWA) across the globe. This cause is particularly important for a number of African countries, South Africa included, where the lives of PWA are threatened daily. There have been numerous cases reported concerning violence against PWA. One such case is the ritual killing in 2015 of Thandazile Mpunzi, a woman with albinism, by her boyfriend and two others, one of whom was a traditional healer. There is a belief that body parts of PWA attract wealth and as a result, PWA are killed and dismembered for muti. Thandazile’s chopped up body was found in a shallow grave, 10 days after her death (the perpetrators were successfully prosecuted). 

Sadly, cases like Thandazile’s are not isolated. There are more stories like hers littered across the country, and indeed, the continent. Since 2006, there have been over 600 (reported) attacks and other violations against PWA in 28 African countries. When one considers how small the ratio of PWA is compared to people who do not have albinism, this translates to a serious threat. The most vulnerable of this already vulnerable group are women and children. They endure kidnapping, human trafficking, murder and mutilation among other violations. These violations have been reported in Tanzania, South Africa, Malawi and Zambia, to name a few.