The community of people living with albinism in Tanzania has in the recent past been haunted by ritual killings targeting their kind, forcing some to retreat to an island commune, and the government to pass a harsh law to punish those trading in body parts harvested from people living with the condition.
Since 2007, over 40 people living with albinism have been killed in Tanzania in the past four years and their bodies are believed to have been dismembered to be sold to black magic practioners who believe that charms made from such body parts bring good fortune and prosperity.
The killings and the trade were so widespread at one time and believed to run into millions of dollars, that body snatchers from Burundi and Kenya were involved.
People living with albinism are born with a genetic condition that deprives them of pigmentation in their skin, hair and eyes.
The Tanzania government’s campaign against killings of people living with albinism and their general discrimination, culminated in the jailing of several suspected such killers, and this year in August, a court in Tanzania sentenced a Kenyan to 17 years in jail following a police sting operation when he tried to sell his friend who is living with albinism.
But the government of Tanzania and people living with albinism did not give up the fight, which was for the very lives of people living with this condition.
In 2008, at the height of the ritual killings, Tanzania’s President Jakaya Kikwete nominated a woman living with the condition to parliament.
Al-Shymaa Kway-Geer served the remainder of parliament’s life until the elections of November 2010. Even though she was not elected by the people, her nomination was a government statement that it would not tolerate discrimination against those who were different, especially those living with albinism.
But the elections of 2010 were even better. Civic United Front’s (CUF) Salum Khalfani Bar’wani, 51, was elected member of parliament for Lindi Town constituency, beating the sitting Regional Commissioner for Iringa region Mohammed Abdul Azizi, who held the parliamentary seat for 15 years.
Bar’wani does not take his election for granted, and knows that the votes that won him the seats were not sympathy votes.
He says people in Lindi did not see the colour of his skin, but rather saw his honesty as a leader. His election is therefore an expression of the “high level of democracy in Tanzania.”
“I am happy with the choice of the people of Lindi Town constituency. They voted hugely to elect me as their MP, and I promise to work hard to deliver services to them.”
Bar’wani said that his election was a victory for people living with albinism. In an interview with The EastAfrican in Dar es Salaam recently, Bar’wani said that his victory shows that the public is aware of the plight of people living with this condition in Lindi and across the country, and wanted a change.
“I believe this is the time to represent and speak for the voiceless people like me, so that their voices too can be heard.”
Voters in Lindi Urban district, southeast Tanzania, overwhelmingly voted for Bar’wani to Parliament, making him the country’s first ever elected lawmaker living with albinism.
In the past, the public did not believe that a person with such a condition or disability could achieve such without sympathy or favour. But Bar’wani says, “Now they believe that we are capable of achieving our goals without sympathy.”
“My joy has no end,” he said, adding, “The people of Lindi have used their wisdom and have appreciated clearly that people living with albinism are capable.”
But all was not a bed of roses for Bar’wani. His fellow contestants for the seat urged voters to reject him, saying he could not think properly because he was living with albinism.
“My opponents ridiculed me and even said that my kind lacked vitamin C and therefore lacked the ability to think. This infuriated the voters,” he said.
One candidate from a prominent party and his campaign manager even used abusive and stigmatising language against Bar’wani, saying he was unsuitable because of his condition.
They told the electorate in Ng’apa, Mingoyo, Chikonji and Matopeni wards at varying times of the campaigns that under normal circumstances people with albinism suffered from memory loss because of the lack of Vitamin C as they get exposed to sunlight.
The candidate is quoted to have said: “In the past, our elders spat on their chests if they met albinos in the morning to drive away any curse.”
Bar’wani said people with such attitudes were no different from those who killed for superstitious reasons.
The patron of Mwanza Region Albino Society, Altaf Hirani said that Bar’wani’s election proves that democracy had finally matured in the country.
“I am so touched that this is the first time in the electoral history of this country for a person living with albinism to be elected by the people,” said Hirani.
He appealed to people with albinism and those with disability not to shy away from taking part in the election and congratulated the voters. He said he hoped that Bar’wani’s winning has sent a clear message that people living with albinos should not be stigmatised.
The head of the Tanzania Albino Society Ernest Kimaya also welcomed Bar’wani’s election. “We are happy to get one one of our own as an MP this year. It’s good for us,” said Kimaya, adding, “It shows our importance in the community.”
Tanzania Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation Bernard Membe from the same region as Bar’wani, said the latter’s election showed an “acceptance of people with disabilities.”
“As an MP in Lindi region I pledge to give him due support despite (his) coming from the opposition,” he said
CUF spokesperson Salum Diman said cheerfully, “I confirm that Salum Khalfani Bar’wani, who is living with albinism was elected as MP for Lindi Urban.”
Bar’wani entered politics in 1992.
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