Malawi government has announced that it will employ community based intelligence in order to get hold of herbalists and traditional healers who prescribe body parts of people with albinism.
Minister of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare Patricia Kaliati disclosed this in an interview in Mzuzu on Tuesday where she said government is dismayed with the brutal killings targeting albinos.
She disclosed that preliminary reports indicate that perpetrators of such cruelty do that upon instruction from various herbalists and traditional healers who believe that body parts from people with albinism such as bones have potential to enrich someone.
“We are geared to ensure that lives and rights of people with albinism are secured and protected, after all this is the year of human rights. We will not sit down and watch herbalists deceive people that riches come after one kills an albino,” said Kaliati who emphasised that wealth comes from hard work and not through depriving one of their right to life.
“We are going flat out on the ground with all agents of law enforcement be it the police, the judiciary and many others to institute systematic investigative structures to get hold of such herbalists,” she added.
Kaliati further condemned communities who think government is not doing enough on the matter such that they resort to mob justice; she said it is better for such people to present their ideas to government instead of taking the law into their own hands.
“Even when people think government is not doing enough, it is not their call to punish the culprits, all we can do is to rally together … let chiefs make their own by-laws and government is there to support,” she explained.
Chairperson for Association of Persons with Albinism in Malawi (Apam) Boniface Massa hailed government for the move and said if properly implemented, the initiative will help establish the root cause of the issue and where the actual market for body parts of albinos is based.
“This is a positive development and we hope it will help put to an end all the merciless killings going on, as an association we are ready to work with government in the new cause,” said Massa yesterday.
According to Massa his association has 2,000 registered members but said the actual population of people with albinism in the country is between 8,000 and 10,000.
Several people have blamed Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) for failing to support and protect of people with albinism. The same CSOs have always been vocal in defending other minority groups including people in same sex relationships.
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