Myths surrounding albinism

30 Apr, 2017 - 00:04 0 Views
Myths surrounding albinism

The Sunday Mail

Dr Christine Peta Disability Issues —
I write this article in response to a number of questions that have been sent to me via-email by readers regarding albinism. What are the superstitious beliefs that surround albinism?

Whilst every culture may have its own weird superstitious beliefs, some cultures take things too far. Within some African communities, persons with albinism are at an increased risk of being abducted and killed because they are regarded as precious commodities that have magical powers.

Their body parts are sold on the black market alongside a belief that they are useful in making concoctions that bring happiness, wealth and good luck.

Body parts may be sold for a minimum of $600 each, whilst an entire dead body can go for as much as $75 000 (Strochlic, 2015). Last year, reports were made that in Malawi, persons with albinism were being hunted like animals, and their bones were being sold both in Malawi and in neighboring Mozambique.

In Malawi, 17-year-old Davis Machinjiri was abducted by four men whilst he was on his way to watch a soccer match with a friend, and he was taken to Mozambique where they killed him (van Heerden, 2016).

Police said, “The men chopped off both his arms and legs and removed his bones. They then buried the rest of his body in a shallow grave.”

Poverty and low literacy rates increase greed and the belief that wealth and business success can only come or can be boosted with some form of magic.

Whilst the killing of persons with albinism has been reported in about 12 African countries from South Africa to Kenya, Tanzania is reportedly the country with the highest number of persons with albinism in the world, as well as the highest rate of albino killings. A Tanzanian man was quoted as saying, “In society there are people such as witchdoctors who look for body parts, people will kill albinos to make magic.” (Burnett, 2012) The reason for killing persons with albinism in Tanzania are more or less similar to those in Malawi, the idea is to harvest body parts such as arms, legs or fingers, which are then taken to witch doctors that in turn make wealth potions.

For example, one report said such a potion can be poured on the ground on which a person wants to find minerals or a fisherman will pour the potion in his canoe so that he catches an abundance of fish to sell, so as to become rich.

Baraka Lusambo, a five-year-old child from Tanzania narrated that a group of men broke into their house, knocked his mother unconscious and cut off his right hand with a machete, all because he has albinism, hence a precious “commodity” that could make people get rich (Heigl, 2015).

Whilst the government of Tanzania has reportedly outlawed witchdoctors in an effort to eliminate albino killings, in contrast, the year 2014 recorded an increase on such attacks in both Tanzania and Malawi.

In Zimbabwe, the practice of killing persons with albinism for the acquisition of wealth or to boost business performance is non-existent. Nevertheless, some husbands still divorce their wives on the grounds that they have given birth to a child with albinism and yet it is never a woman’s fault that a child is born with albinism.

Some men in Zimbabwe coerce women with albinism into sexual relations, alongside a mistaken belief that intimacy with a woman with albinism can cure a man of HIV.

In addition, persons with albinism in Zimbabwe experience high levels of stigma as they are constantly ridiculed and stigmatised. Name-calling is rampant with terms such as “murungudunhu” (quasi-white person), among others being used.

Albinism occurs when a person has inherited two mutated (altered) genes, one from the sperm of the father and another from the mother’s egg when they join at fertilization (Lund, 2014). Such an occurrence results in little or no production of the pigment melanin, which determines the colour of the skin, hair and eyes.

Apart from determining the colour of skin, melanin also plays a role in the development of certain optical nerves, hence its absence causes poor eye-sight.

Albinism increases sensitivity to sun exposure hence people with albinism may be more inclined to developing skin cancer or wounds.

Although albinism cannot be cured, people with albinism can live normal lives, take several measures that can improve their eye-sight and they can also avoid too much exposure to the sun in an effort to guard against the occurrence of cancer. Why is the rate of albinism escalating in Africa compared to Western countries?

At a worldwide scale, Tanzania has one of the highest rates of albinism in the world, at a rate of 1 in every 1 400 people compared to the international rate of 1 in 20 000. Scientists have attributed such a scenario to the fact that Tanzania and East Africa may be the place where the genetic mutation that creates albinism started.

In addition, due to the stigma that surrounds albinism which results in social exclusions of persons with albinism, some of them will resort to marrying each other and having children, thereby increasing the likelihood that their children will also have albinism. Given that a person must inherit two copies of a mutated gene, one from each parent in order to have albinism (recessive inheritance), blame for having a child with albinism should not be placed squarely on the mother. In any case, no-one needs to be blamed for a natural biological occurrence, which humanity has no control over.

There is no need to run our lives through superstitious practices, there is no evidence that anyone has ever become rich because of a position which consisted of a body part of a person with albinism. In addition, no man has ever been cured of HIV after being intimate with a woman who has albinism.

One student with albinism said, “People need to stop being gullible and ridiculous. We have the same blood, it is just the skin pigmentation that is different.” (Patel & Maduna, 2016) Parents ought to make efforts to ensure that children with albinism do not drop out of school due to poor eye sight. Whilst the provision of prescription spectacles is necessary, teachers ought to know that children with albinism have poor vision and they may struggle to read the writing board like other children A strategic sitting arrangement is therefore required.

In addition, children with albinism should not be made to share text-books with others, they need their own books so that they can hold them close to their eyes, because they can easily fall behind (Lund, 2016). There is no need to confine children with albinism to special schools because that is how isolation begins.

To avoid too much exposure to the sun, persons with albinism ought to wear long sleeved shirts, trousers, skirts, sunglasses and wide brimmed hats to protect their skin and eyes. Some school rules do not permit the wearing of long sleeves during summer, but there is need for educational staff to make exceptions for students with albinism.

Dr Christine Peta is a public healthcare practitioner who holds a PhD in Disability Studies. Be part of international debate on how best to nurture a society which is more accessible, supportive and inclusive of disabled people. Partner with Disability Centre for Africa (DCFA) on www.dcfafrica.com or [email protected]

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