A British doctor conducting an investigation in Malawi has exposed the extent to which albinos in the country are targeted for their body organs. In some instances, witch doctors hire hitmen to kill the albinos.
30-year-old doctor Oscar Duke says the witch-doctors take advantage of impoverished rural Malawian men to pay them to kill mostly albino children and mutilate their bodies to retrieve body organs such as brains, hearts, livers and kidneys.
Dr. Duke, who also suffers from the condition, says the witch-doctors then use these organs, which can fetch up to 7 million kwacha, to prepare “medicines” believed to bring fortune, influence and power.
Despite government protection, about 65 albinos have been physically attacked in Malawi since 2014, with 13 of them being killed. Some have had their limbs severed. In Tanzania, the figures are worse, with up to 170 attacks and 70 deaths in 10 years.
Dr. Duke has compiled his findings in a documentary aired on the BBC aimed at raising awareness and urging East African governments to do more to protect albino sufferers.
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