Introduction under construction
(webmaster FVDK)

SADC countries: Warn­ing over ‘under­cover gen­o­cide’ of per­sons with albin­ism

Published: June 14, 2026
By: Musa Simelane – Sunday Observer, Eswatini

The Swazi­l­and Asso­ci­ation of Per­sons with Albin­ism (SAPA) has raised alarm over per­sist­ent dis­crim­in­a­tion, dan­ger­ous super­sti­tions and viol­ence against people with albin­ism.

The asso­ci­ation warned that the situ­ation amounts to an ‘under­cover gen­o­cide’, not just in the king­dom, but the wider South­ern African Devel­op­ment Com­munity (SADC) region. The con­cern was expressed by SAPA Exec­ut­ive Dir­ector Philemon Gama dur­ing the com­mem­or­a­tion of Inter­na­tional Albin­ism Aware­ness Day held at the Deputy prime min­is­ter’s office on Fri­day.

The event was atten­ded by Min­is­ter of Tour­ism and Envir­on­mental Affairs Jane Mkhonta-Simelane, who rep­res­en­ted Deputy Prime Min­is­ter Thulisile Dladla. Rep­res­ent­at­ives from dis­ab­il­ity organ­isa­tions and SAPA mem­bers were also in attend­ence.

Gama said mis­in­form­a­tion about albin­ism remains wide­spread, con­trib­ut­ing to stigma, exclu­sion and in some cases, viol­ent attacks. He noted that harm­ful beliefs—such as the idea that people with albin­ism do not die but dis­ap­pear, or that their body parts bring luck—con­tinue to place them at risk of ritual killings.

He cited recent incid­ents in the South­ern African Devel­op­ment Com­munity (SADC) region, includ­ing the killing of chil­dren with albin­ism in Mad­a­gas­car and another case in Malawi involving a rel­at­ive. He cited cases in the coun­try, recall­ing the 2010 murders of two chil­dren in the Shisel­weni region and a another in the Hho­hho region in 2016, which he said demon­strate that the threat is not the­or­et­ical but real.

“These are not was olated incid­ents. They reflect a deeper prob­lem driven by super­sti­tion and silence. In many cases, dis­ap­pear­ances are not prop­erly repor­ted due to cul­tural mis­con­cep­tions,” Gama said.

Bey­ond safety con­cerns, he high­lighted sys­temic dis­crim­in­a­tion affect­ing access to oppor­tun­it­ies, includ­ing fin­an­cial assist­ance. He said per­sons with albin­ism were often met with skep­ti­cism when seek­ing sup­port, lim­it­ing their abil­ity to improve their live­li­hoods.

Gama wel­comed gov­ern­ment efforts to improve liv­ing con­di­tions for per­sons with albin­ism, includ­ing a hous­ing ini­ti­at­ive announced by the deputy prime min­is­ter’s office. Under the pro­gramme, five houses were alloc­ated, with two already com­pleted and handed over at Mhlangatane and Mayi­wane, while three remain under con­struc­tion.

He fur­ther called for SPF 50+ sun­screen to be included on the national essen­tial medi­cines list, arguing that it should be provided free due to the health risks asso­ci­ated with pro­longed sun expos­ure.

SAPA also urged stronger regional and con­tin­ental legal pro­tec­tions, call­ing on gov­ern­ments and the African Union to intensify efforts to pre­vent ritual killings and dis­crim­in­a­tion. Gama appealed to com­munit­ies, tra­di­tional lead­ers and the media to act­ively chal­lenge harm­ful beliefs and ensure respons­ible report­ing.

He stressed that aware­ness must extend bey­ond annual com­mem­or­a­tions.

“This issue requires con­sist­ent atten­tion, edu­ca­tion and action throughout the year if we are to achieve mean­ing­ful change,” he said. Gama con­cluded by call­ing for sus­tained advocacy and stronger insti­tu­tional sup­port to ensure the safety, dig­nity and full inclu­sion of per­sons with albin­ism in soci­ety.

Source: Warn­ing over ‘under­cover gen­o­cide’ of per­sons with albin­ism