Africa's albinos: 'Don't hide!'

Thando Hopa is a South African lawyer in her mid 20s. She grew up with lots of sunblock, long clothing, and complexes. She was always hiding in the shade, she says. Now Hopa is working to tackle the discrimination faced by people living with Albinism in Africa - also as a catwalk model.

Thando Hopa was discovered four years ago in a shopping center by South African designer Gert-Johan Coetzee, behind her in the photo. Today she's one of the best known models in South Africa. Her photo has been published in the top fashion magazines, and in 2013 she was on the cover of the first issue of Forbes Life Africa.

Many Africans believe that albinos are not living beings but ghosts, and that their body parts can bring good luck and prosperity. Actually, albinism is a genetic disorder characterized by a lack of pigmentation in the skin. Worldwide, around one in 20,000 people is born with the disorder. Albinism is fairly widespread in East and southern Africa - just like superstition.

Criminals hunt albinos, killing and selling their bodies to traditional healers, who believe they have magical properties. According to the UN, the body of an albino person can be worth more than 60,000 euros on the black market ($68,000). A single leg can be sold for around 2,000 euros ($2,200). Tanzania has banned unregistered traditional healers - neighboring Malawi has not.

Dorothy Mausen, from Malawi's Machinga province, says she never feels safe. Around 10,000 albinos live in the South-East African nation. According to Amnesty International, 18 of them have been murdered in the last year and a half. Malawian police have recorded more than 60 violent attacks on albinos. It's thought many more cases go unreported.

Razik Jaffalie doesn't let his sons out of his sight. To protect three-year-old Cassim, he even had to give up his job. Malawians are proud of their reputation as kind, peaceful people. But following the latest attacks on albinos, Malawi's president Peter Mutharika said he was 'ashamed' by the killings in the country.

Salif Keita is one of the stars of African pop music. He was born in Mali and knows how hard it can be to grow up with albinism in Africa. He moved to Paris in 1984, and became famous when he performed at London's Wembley Stadium on 11 June 1988 - a concert for Nelson Mandela's 70th birthday. Mandela was still in prison at the time.

A festival in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2015 kickstarted a small revolution. "Fièrement Ndundu" - "proud to be albino," a three day event in Kinshasa, provided a platform for people to share their experiences, challenge stereotypes and build up their self confidence. Now many Africans are making their voices heard online, for example with the Twitter hashtag #AlbinismIsJustAColor.

But albinism is not 'just' a skin color. Those with the disorder lack the skin pigment melanin, which protects the body from the sun's rays. The deficiency means albinos are at a high risk of developing skin cancer. Many also have problems with vision, because of the lack of melanin in their eyes. For albinos, sun protection is essential.

For Said Seremani and his Team "Albino United," training sessions begin when the sun starts to set over the Tanzanian capital Dar es Salaam. They only have a small, dusty pitch, but they have big dreams. The players want to become international football stars and prove that albinos can play just as well as role models like Didier Drogba or Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.