IV 
111TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 1088 
Recognizing the plight of people with albinism in East Africa and condemning 
their murder and mutilation. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 22, 2010 
Mr. CONNOLLY of Virginia (for himself, Mr. WOLF, Mrs. CAPPS, Ms. BALD-
WIN, Ms. BERKLEY, Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, Ms. WATSON, Mr. INGLIS, Mr. 
SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. SCHAUER, Mr. PAYNE, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. 
GRIJALVA, Mr. LANCE, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. HASTINGS of Flor-
ida, Ms. NORTON, Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. CLY-
BURN, Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. MCMAHON, Ms. GRANGER, Mr. MCCAUL, Mr. 
SARBANES, Mrs. SCHMIDT, Mr. COHEN, Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas, Ms. 
RICHARDSON, Ms. HARMAN, Mr. MURPHY of New York, Mrs. MALONEY, 
Mr. SCHOCK, Mr. ROHRABACHER, Mr. MATHESON, and Ms. LEE of Cali-
fornia) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
Committee on Foreign Affairs 
RESOLUTION 
Recognizing the plight of people with albinism in East Africa 
and condemning their murder and mutilation. 
Whereas, in parts of East Africa, most notably Tanzania, 
shamans promote the reprehensible belief that people 
with albinism are less than human, and that their body 
parts can be made into potions to bring wealth or luck; 
Whereas over the last 2 years, more than 50 adults and chil-
dren with albinism have been murdered in East Africa by 
mercenaries who sell their body parts to shamans; 
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•HRES 1088 IH 
Whereas countless other people with albinism have survived 
these attacks, and have been permanently mutilated in 
the name of profit; 
Whereas two mothers of children with albinism were attacked 
by gangs who were searching for the children in Eastern 
Tanzania in November 2008; 
Whereas a 10-year-old boy with albinism, Gasper Elikana, 
was beheaded by men who fled with his leg in October 
2008; 
Whereas a 28-year-old woman with albinism, Mariamu Stan-
ford, was attacked while she was asleep in October 2009, 
losing both of her arms and her unborn child; 
Whereas a 17-year-old woman with albinism from Kenya, 
Vumilia Makoye, was killed by 2 men in her home who 
sawed off her legs in May of 2008; 
Whereas hundreds of children with albinism are living in fear 
for their lives in rural outposts; 
Whereas people with albinism are routinely shunned by their 
communities and often excluded from East African soci-
ety; 
Whereas people with albinism in East Africa are not provided 
with life-saving information about preventing skin cancer, 
and have no means of protecting themselves from excess 
sunlight; 
Whereas people with albinism lack access to medical treat-
ment for skin cancer, and the average person in East Af-
rica with albinism dies by age 30 from skin cancer, and 
only 2 percent of people with albinism in that region live 
to age 40; and 
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•HRES 1088 IH 
Whereas a number of government officials in rural areas of 
East Africa have ignored or even colluded with local 
shamans in these degradations: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) condemns the murder and mutilation of 
adults and children with albinism for their body 
parts; 
(2) expresses the support of the citizens of the 
United States for people with albinism in East Afri-
ca who have been the victims of such attacks; 
(3) recognizes that the murder and mutilation 
of people because of a genetic condition constitutes 
a form of gross violation of human rights; 
(4) urges the Governments of Tanzania and 
Burundi to actively and aggressively prosecute and 
convict the perpetrators of these crimes; 
(5) calls for the Governments of Tanzania and 
Burundi, along with international organizations, to 
actively support the education of people with albi-
nism about the prevention of skin cancer; 
(6) calls for the education of East Africans 
about the realities of albinism, with the purpose of 
eliminating the discrimination and treatment of peo-
ple with albinism; 
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