A/HRC/40/62 themselves of judicial processes.24 The present study has attracted numerous testimonies of cost-related barriers. For instance, the cost of transportation to courts of law was repeatedly cited, including by a stakeholder from Uganda who gave the example of a case in the town of Kabale where the mother of a child with albinism was attacked and was unable to attend court processes on the case, which had many adjournments. 33. Another frequently reported barrier was illiteracy and low educational qualifications, which affect the self-confidence and self-esteem of persons with albinism in using a justice system that is largely, in its nature and structure, more accessible to the educated elite. 25 It was also noted that because relatives are often the perpetrators of crimes against persons with albinism,26 their families often face a dilemma, as seeking recourse through the formal justice system is deemed to be embarrassing to the family. There is also often direct or indirect family coercion to settle the matter quietly. 34. Witchcraft beliefs and practices which facilitate misconceptions about persons with albinism, including the misbelief that their body parts can be used by witchdoctors for potions that bring good luck, are also socially common. 27 Some judicial and law enforcement officers are therefore apprehensive about investigating or adjudicating cases involving persons with albinism for fear of being attacked by witchdoctors or fear of retaliation from powerful users of body parts. Legal and normative barriers 35. Though many countries have legislation on accessing justice, some lack specific articulation of access to justice in the context of persons with albinism. 28 Other laws that specifically provide for disability rights overlook the right to access justice, or neglect to provide for reasonable accommodation in the context of access to justice. For instance, in a submission from Burkina Faso, the stakeholder pointed out that national law No. 012-2010 on the protection and promotion of the rights of persons with disabilities did not address the issue of access to justice. 36. It has also been noted that some laws fail to comprehensively address the dynamics of attacks against persons with albinism. For instance, in spite of the fact that most attacks on persons with albinism involve the extraction/removal and selling of body parts, some laws still do not specifically recognize the offence of trafficking of body parts that are not organs as a felony. In addition, there is also often a lack of clarity on the applicable legal instruments in this regard. 37. Another significant gap in legislation has been the inability of the law to address witchcraft (A/HRC/34/59). Where such laws exist, there is usually a problem of definition and, therefore, enforcement as well as an absence of regulation of the practice of witchcraft. In addition, some countries have outdated legislation on witchcraft, and there are very few efforts to review them. Governments should initiate reviews of and amendments to relevant laws to reflect human rights standards and proscribe and prosecute harmful witchcraftrelated practices (A/HRC/37/57/Add.2). 38. As noted in a preliminary survey on root causes of attacks (A/71/255), witchcraft remains one of the most challenging and complex phenomena in the human rights context. Compared to other root causes of attacks against persons with albinism such as poverty and ignorance, it receives little attention in legal systems even though its manifestation is highly correlated with several forms of harmful practice. At the 2017 workshop on witchcraft and human rights, it was underscored that multiple strategies need to be adopted in combating witchcraft-related harmful practices, including implementing awareness-raising 24 25 26 27 28 8 Submission from a stakeholder in Zambia. Submission from a stakeholder in Ghana. See Human Rights Committee, general comment No. 36 (2018) on the right to life; and submission by the Independent Expert to the Committee dated 6 October 2017. See International Bar Association, “Waiting to Disappear”: International and Regional Standards for the Protection and Promotion of the Human Rights of Persons with Albinism (London, 2017). Submissions from stakeholders in Burkina Faso and Fiji.