Malawi offers cash prices for reporting crimes against albinism

Image result for malawi albinism

The Malawi government has offered cash prices of up to $7,000 (Sh700, 280) for anyone who reports crimes against persons with albinism.

Belief in witchcraft is widespread in rural Malawi, one of the world’s poorest countries, fuelling ritual killings particularly targeting people with albinism because of the belief that their body parts can increase wealth.

The renewed focus on albino murders comes after the New Year’s Day killing of Yasin Phiri in front of his young son. Local media said the man’s arms were hacked off, his teeth pulled and his private parts removed, prompting calls by local and international civil society groups for government action.

 “Government will reward K5 million to anyone providing information that is proven to be credible relating to any conspiracy to abduct or kill persons with albinism,” President Peter Mutharika’s office said in a statement.

The presidency will also form a judicial inquiry into the killings and abductions, which have reached 150 since 2014 according to the United Nations.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *