UN expert: Inclusion of persons with albinism in policies and measures affecting them can help save lives

GENEVA (13 June 2022) –   On the occasion of International Albinism Awareness Day 2022, the UN Independent Expert on albinism Muluka-Anne Miti-Drummond issued the following statement:

“On International Albinism Awareness Day, persons with albinism around the world are commemorating this special milestone under the theme “United in Making our Voices heard”. This theme highlights the need to include persons with albinism in discussions and initiatives affecting their human rights, to ensure they enjoy the equality and protection accorded to them in international law and standards. The theme also recognizes the need for persons with albinism to work together and build partnerships to effectively tackle human rights challenges they face.

In spite of the many efforts and achievements accomplished since the establishment of my mandate in 2015, persons with albinism still have a long way to go in achieving equality and recognition in various spheres of society.

Persons with albinism are largely absent from positions that influence decisions affecting their lives, whether in the public and private sector, at the community level or in regional and international forums. 

The exclusion of persons with albinism in these crucial discussions and spaces can ultimately lead to violations of their human rights. While some progress is being made in some countries in the areas of health, education and employment, we continue to witness ritual killings of persons with albinism, discrimination, bullying and attitudinal barriers against them. In addition to all this, contemporary human rights concerns and policies developed in response to these issues continue to leave persons with albinism behind.

If we do not include persons with albinism in these discussions and decisions, we perpetuate structural discrimination and historic inequalities. There can be no equality without the inclusion of the voices of the most vulnerable.

This year, International Albinism Awareness Day celebrates the work of albinism groups in making their voices heard. It signals that while the struggle for more visibility and inclusion is ongoing, working in solidarity as an albinism movement will help the voices of persons with albinism to be heard.”

ENDS

Ms. Muluka-Anne Miti-Drummond (Zambia) commenced her mandate as Independent Expert on the enjoyment of human rights by persons with Albinism on 1 August 2021. She has worked in the area of human rights for almost 20 years, most recently as a senior international human rights consultant, including on the area of human rights and albinism. 

The Special Rapporteurs, Independent Experts and Working Groups are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures’ experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.