Wakilii

Centre for Human Rights and Others v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 019-2018)

African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights · [2025] AfCHPR 4 · 2025 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application before the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights alleging systematic violations of rights of persons with albinism in Tanzania
Decision
Application granted with findings of multiple violations and comprehensive reparations ordered including legislative reform, compensation fund, awareness campaigns and implementation monitoring

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The African Court found Tanzania violated multiple rights of persons with albinism through failure to prevent attacks, investigate and prosecute perpetrators with due diligence, and provide adequate protection, health services and education. The Court held that systematic attacks, mutilations and killings of persons with albinism, driven by harmful superstitions and witchcraft beliefs, constituted violations of rights to life, dignity, freedom from torture, non-discrimination, health and education. Tanzania was ordered to establish a compensation fund, amend legislation to treat attacks on persons with albinism as aggravated offences, implement a national action plan, and undertake sustained awareness campaigns.

Outcome

Application granted with findings of multiple violations and comprehensive reparations ordered including legislative reform, compensation fund, awareness campaigns and implementation monitoring

Facts

Persons with albinism in Tanzania face systematic persecution driven by harmful superstitions and witchcraft beliefs that their body parts possess magical powers to generate wealth. From 2000 to 2016, 76 persons with albinism were killed and 69 survived attacks including mutilations, with children comprising nearly 70% of victims. Attackers target body parts of living persons with albinism and desecrate graves to steal remains for witchcraft purposes. A thriving cross-border trade in body parts sustains demand and high prices. Persons with albinism face discrimination from birth, with some parents urged to abandon children with albinism. They experience barriers to education due to lack of assistive devices for vision impairments, bullying and harassment. Most have limited employment prospects and work outdoors, increasing exposure to ultraviolet radiation and skin cancer risk. Tanzania placed some children with albinism in temporary shelters for protection, but conditions were overcrowded with inadequate food, beds and staff. Many cases of attacks were not effectively investigated or prosecuted.

Issues

  1. Whether the Court has temporal jurisdiction to hear allegations of violations that began before Tanzania ratified the Protocol establishing the Court.
  2. Whether the Applicants were required to exhaust local remedies before seizing the Court.
  3. Whether Tanzania violated the right to non-discrimination of persons with albinism under Article 2 of the African Charter.
  4. Whether Tanzania violated the right to life of persons with albinism under Article 4 of the African Charter and Article 6 of the ICCPR.
  5. Whether Tanzania violated the prohibition against torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment under Article 5 of the Charter and Article 7 of the ICCPR.
  6. Whether Tanzania violated the right to inherent dignity of persons with albinism under Article 5 of the Charter.
  7. Whether Tanzania violated the right to an effective remedy under Article 7 of the Charter.
  8. Whether Tanzania violated the prohibition on sale, trafficking and abduction of children under Article 29 of the Children's Charter.
  9. Whether Tanzania violated the principle of the best interests of the child under Article 4 of the Children's Charter.
  10. Whether Tanzania violated the right to education under Article 17 of the Charter and Article 11 of the Children's Charter.
  11. Whether Tanzania violated the right to health under Article 16 of the Charter and Article 24 of the CRC.

Orders

  • Application declared admissible.
  • Tanzania violated Article 2 of the Charter (right to non-discrimination).
  • Tanzania violated Article 4 of the Charter and Article 6 of the ICCPR (right to life).
  • Tanzania violated Article 5 of the Charter and Article 7 of the ICCPR (prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment).
  • Tanzania violated Article 5 of the Charter (right to dignity).
  • Tanzania did not violate Article 7 of the Charter (right to effective remedy).
  • Tanzania violated Article 29 of the Children's Charter (prohibition of trafficking and sale of children).
  • Tanzania violated Article 4 of the Children's Charter (best interests of the child).
  • Tanzania violated Article 17 of the Charter and Article 11 of the Children's Charter (right to education).
  • Tanzania violated Article 16 of the Charter and Article 24 of the CRC (right to health).
  • Tanzania violated Article 1 of the Charter (duty to adopt legislative and other measures).
  • Tanzania ordered to establish a compensation fund for victims of attacks on persons with albinism.
  • Tanzania ordered to pay TZS 10,000,000 into the compensation fund as seed money and compensation for moral prejudice.
  • Tanzania ordered to amend laws to criminalize attacks on persons with albinism as aggravated offences within two years.
  • Tanzania ordered to amend the Witchcraft Act to clarify distinctions between witchcraft and traditional healing.
  • Tanzania ordered to finalize and implement a national action plan for protection of persons with albinism.
  • Tanzania ordered to conduct sustained awareness campaigns to dispel myths about albinism.
  • Tanzania ordered to provide training to law enforcement, prosecutors and judiciary on investigating and prosecuting attacks on persons with albinism.
  • Tanzania ordered to ensure adequate supply of sunscreen, hats and sunglasses to persons with albinism.
  • Tanzania ordered to provide mental health services to persons with albinism.
  • Tanzania ordered to ensure reasonable accommodation in education for children with albinism.
  • Tanzania ordered to report on implementation within 18 months and every six months thereafter.
  • Judgment to be published.

Rules and key headnotes

State Responsibility — Duty to Prevent Violations by Non-State Actors — Due Diligence Standard
A State bears responsibility for killings and torture by private individuals where it fails to exercise due diligence to prevent such acts, investigate them effectively, or prosecute and punish perpetrators, particularly where an observable pattern of violations has been overlooked or ignored.
Discrimination — Indirect Discrimination — Disparate Impact on Protected Groups
Discrimination may arise not only from direct differential treatment based on prohibited grounds, but also from measures or actions that have a disparate effect on groups or individuals, even without visible discriminatory intent, where such measures lack objective and reasonable justification and are not necessary and proportional.
Right to Life — State Duty to Protect Vulnerable Groups — Heightened Responsibility
States have a particular responsibility to protect the right to life of individuals or groups who are frequently targeted or particularly at risk, including on grounds of disability or physical characteristics, and this responsibility is heightened when an observable pattern of violence has been overlooked or ignored.
Exhaustion of Local Remedies — Exception for Serious and Massive Violations
Where an application reveals serious and massive violations of human rights affecting a large number of victims, the requirement of exhaustion of local remedies does not apply literally, as it would be impracticable or undesirable for complainants to seize domestic courts in respect of each individual complaint, particularly where such remedies are as a practical matter unavailable.
Torture and Cruel Treatment — State Acquiescence Through Omission
State acquiescence in torture or cruel treatment by non-state actors can be achieved through omissions as well as acts. Where a State has reasonable grounds to believe that acts of torture or ill-treatment are being committed by private actors and fails to exercise due diligence to prevent, investigate, prosecute and punish such actors, the State bears responsibility and its officials are considered complicit or otherwise responsible.
Best Interests of the Child — Separation from Parents — State Obligations
The principle of the best interests of the child requires that all actions concerning children, whether by public or private entities, must ensure the full and effective enjoyment of all rights and holistic development of the child. Long-term separation of children from parents must be justified and accompanied by measures to maintain family linkages and facilitate eventual reunification.
Right to Health — Reasonable Accommodation for Persons with Disabilities
The right to health for persons with disabilities requires States to provide reasonable accommodation including essential medical supplies and assistive devices necessary for survival and prevention of serious illness. The State must utilize maximum available resources and seek international assistance where necessary to fulfill this obligation.

Legislation cited (20)

  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 1
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 2
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 4
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 5
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 7
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 16
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 17
  • African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child Article 4
  • African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child Article 11
  • African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child Article 16
  • African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child Article 29
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 6
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 7
  • Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Article 24
  • Constitution of Tanzania 1977 Article 26(2)
  • Basic Rights and Duties Enforcement Act 1995 s.4
  • Penal Code 1981
  • Anti-trafficking in Persons Act 2008
  • Persons with Disabilities Act 2010
  • Witchcraft Act 1928

Cases cited (9)

  • Reverend Christopher Mtikila v. Tanzania
  • Urban Mkandawire v. Malawi
  • Zongo and Others v. Burkina Faso
  • Andrew Ambrose Cheusi v United Republic of Tanzania (2020) 4 AfCLR 219
  • Ligue Ivorienne des Droits de l'Homme and Others v. Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, ACtHPR, Application No. 041-2016, Judgment of 5 September 2023
  • Beneficiaries of the late Norbert Zongo, Abdoulaye Nikiema alias Ablasse, Ernest Zongo and Blaise Ilboudo & the Burkinabè Human and Peoples' Rights Movement v. Burkina Faso (preliminary objections) (21 June 2013) 1 AfCLR 197
  • Osman v. United Kingdom
  • Velasquez Rodriguez v. Honduras, Judgment of 29 July 1988
  • Legal and Human Rights Centre and Tanganyika Law Society v. Hon. Mizengo Pinda and Attorney General

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Centre for Human Rights and Others v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 019-2018) [2025] AfCHPR 4 (5 February 2025)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.