300 albino children go into hiding

• They fear ritual killings which are on the rise in Burundi

The occult-based killings of albinos have sparked a crisis in Burundi and Tanzania, according to a new report.

As many as 300 children and teenagers are now in hiding. Others are studying in Tanzanian schools for the disabled or in emergency shelters set up by police in Burundi.

The International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) and Red Crescent societies report was launched in Nairobi on Thursday. It says thousands of albinos are unable to move freely for trade, study or work.

They are prey to hunters hired mainly by witchdoctors in search of albino body parts for their lucrative businesses.

Official reports document 56 killings of albinos in Burundi and Tanzania in the past two years.

In Burundi, IFRC has partnered with the government to locate albinos who have gone into hiding and assess the problems they are facing.

Officials are also developing rehabilitation and vocational training programmes that will help albinos become self-sufficient, according to the report, titled Through Albino Eyes.

The Tanzanian Red Cross Society intends to provide the albino community with health education covering skin care, protective hats and long-sleeved shirts.

Although there has been only one reported albino killing in Kenya, officials urge the government not to downplay the threat.

“This is a matter that involves loss of human life. The government should take action and recognise that there is a whole community suffering on the basis of colour,” the national coordinator of the Albinism Society of Kenya, Mr Isaac Mwaura, said at the ongoing IFRC meeting.

IFRC secretary-general Bekele Geleta said albinism needed urgent international attention.