Criminal gangs nicknamed "albino hunters", armed with machetes,
knives and axes are striking fear into people living with albinism in
Malawi, abducting and often killing their victims in broad daylight and
in the dead of night, prompting police to announce a shoot-to-kill
policy.
The latest victim of the brutal attacks is a nine-year
old boy with albinism from Malawi's eastern district of Machinga. His
mother Edna Cedrick tried to rescue her son Brian when two attackers abducted
him early in March 2016.
A police officer from Machinga district, Isaac
Ndala, confirmed the abduction, adding that the kidnappers injured the
boy's mother. The abduction happened while her husband was away
on a fishing errand at the nearby Lake Chilwa.
According
to South Malawi News, the mutilated body of the boy has been found. His
head and other parts of his body were cut off (pictured). Police have arrested a
22-year-old man for taking part in the gruesome murder.
The audacious kidnapping is not an isolated case, as abductions,
attempted killings and brutal murders have prompted some police
authorities to brand albinos an "endangered species" in Malawi.
According
to the police, by now about 50 criminal offences have been committed
against albinos and the number might even be higher than as some
incidents may not have been reported to police.
"The latest statistics we have are of last year, 2015," Malawi police spokesperson Nicholas Gondwa told News24.
"Over
30 criminal cases were reported that included killings, abductions, and
being found with bones of persons with albinism. Just imagine, there
are even some daredevils who go to cemeteries to dig graves where people
with albinism were buried. All that is done in the name of hunting for
the body parts or bones of albinos," he said.