Tanzania Association of People with Albinism (TAS) and the Center for Law and Human Rights have called on the Simba club to apologize for what they called a humiliating incident
The incident occurred on August 6, 2023 at the celebration of the Lion Day festival held at the Benjamini Mkapa stadium in Dar es Salaam by making a person with a skin disability ride while wearing a baby diaper
Speaking today, Wednesday August 9, 2023 in Dar es Salaam, the chairman of TAS, Godson Mollel said that this event is the second for Simba to do, the first was on August 8, 2022 when they entered with a coffin that carried a person with albinism
He has said that such actions undermine the dignity of people with albinism in the country and lead to the existence of many discussions in society, including on the internet, which shows mockery of those people against human rights
Mollel has said that for many years there have been great efforts to defend people with albinism in the country due to the history of violence that led to the loss of their lives, as well as the large number of victims of acts of cruelty and stigmatization
"We emphasize that the existing traditional joke of Simba and Yanga does not justify acts of violating someone's dignity for any reason, be it intentional or unintentional," said Mollel
Also, he said that in many communities, people with albinism have been associated with bad traditions and cultures that suppress their personality, so the continuation of such actions is undermining the efforts of the government, advocacy organizations and private stakeholders to educate the community about albinism.
He said when actions like this are allowed to be done, especially by a large Simba institution that has an influence on society, it sets back to a large extent all the efforts made to encourage positive images of people with albinism
On his part, the Director of the Center for Law and Human Rights, Anna Henga, has given an opinion to all influential institutions in society, especially big football teams, to avoid humiliating actions and instead focus on encouraging respect and dignity
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Henga has asked people with albinism not to take such actions lightly and instead condemn them strongly because they are human beings like others who have the right not to be humiliated and to be respected for their dignity
He has also asked the leadership of Simba to apologize to people with albinism and the public for acts of dehumanization, and to ask the Government and the Tanzania Football Federation (TFF) to manage the matter
Mwanaspoti
