SPECIAL REPORT: THE SHAME OF TANZANIA — Kikwete Pledges Crackdown On Albino Killings

In Tanzania, 1 in 1,400 people have albino skin. In the West, the numbers are 1 in 20,000. (Photo: dawn)

Tanzania is an extremely impoverished country in Eastern Africa. Though there are a wealthy few, the majority of Tanzanians must work several jobs in order to barely feed their families. That is why many Tanzanians turn to crime in order to make money.

The most atrocious of these desperate crimes is the mutilation of albino citizens. There are people that sell their limbs to witch doctors for a pretty penny. Recently, it's been rumored that politicians and the wealthy are involved in this horrendous trade.

Tanzania President Jakaya Kikwete

Now Tanzania's President Jakaya Kikwete is promising to end a wave of killings of albinos, saying the witchcraft-related murders were shaming his east African nation.

Activists say attackers have killed at least 75 albinos in Tanzania since 2000 to use their body parts in rituals.

Based on Reuters report:
President Kikwete said in a national address late Monday, "We will not allow things to escalate as they did in previous years. I believe that with close cooperation between the government and society, we will succeed in ending these killings of persons with albinism and rid our nation of this shame. It is a false belief that if someone has the body part of a person with albinism, this will bring success in business, fishing and mining activities. This is what has been fuelling this ongoing evil."

There are about 200,000 albinos in Tanzania, most of them easily recognizable as they lack pigment in their skin, eyes and hair.

Witch doctors often tell clients that albino body parts will bring them luck in love, life and business. Similar beliefs exist in other African societies, but activists say attacks on albinos are particularly prevalent in Tanzania.

Tanzanian police on Monday banned a planned demonstration by the Tanzania Albinism Society (TAS) in the country's commercial capital, Dar es Salaam, citing security reasons, but Kikwete said he had agreed to meet albino leaders next week to discuss possible solutions to the killings.

Kikwete said more than 40 albinos have been killed since 2007 but insisted that his government was taking action to end the murders. He did give details on how the government would stop the killings.

The murders have been concentrated in gold-rich regions and fishing communities surrounding the country's Lake Victoria area where superstitious beliefs are rampant.

Activists say most attacks are not reported to the police.