Children of the Moon

Children of the Moon

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For years, the alabaster-skinned people born on this sun-scorched constellation of islands off the Caribbean coast of Panama have been venerated as the Children of the Moon or the Grandchildren of the Sun.

But that same sun - their mythic, celestial ancestor - is also the albinos’ greatest foe.

. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Experts say there are hundreds of albinos among the 80,000 indigenous Guna, or Kuna, who live in Panama, nearly half on the mainland of the Guna Yala region and three dozen of its 365 palm-speckled islands.

. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

There has been no census but Pascale Jeambrun, founder of the local S.O.S Albino organisation, says one in every 150 Guna children born is albino.

At a global level, the rate is believed to be around 1 in 17,000.

In some countries like Tanzania, albinos can be persecuted and killed as a symbol of bad luck, or witchcraft. But the Guna treat their albino children with love and respect.

. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

"As the ancestors say, it's a blessing," said Yira Boyd, mother of 6-year-old Guna albino girl Delyane Avila, pictured here drawing in her notebook, who lives on the island of Ailigandi. "If you look after them you can arrive at that special place in the heavens."

. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso
Edna Perez, 71, suffers from skin cancer.

Though not persecuted, Guna albinos face another threat: the tropical sun that can cause them eye problems and skin cancers.

More than half the region's albinos suffer some form of skin cancer, said Jose Jons, a doctor on the island of Ustupu, compared with an incidence of less than 1 percent in the global population, according to World Health Organisation figures.

As modern medical knowledge about the illness has begun to penetrate the region's atolls, reported cases of skin cancers have risen, said Rosa Espana, head of dermatology at the National Oncology Institute in Panama City.

She now sees about three Guna albinos a week in her clinic, about three times the number that came three years ago.

Doctors consulted by Reuters said the number of older albinos dying from skin cancer has been rising, but Panama's health ministry does not keep a tally.

The grey eyes of the Guna albinos are also vulnerable to nystagmus, an involuntary eye movement which can impair vision.

Because of their sensitive skin, young Guna albinos must be shuttled to and from school, avoiding the baking heat, while they watch their friends play in the streets.

. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Albinos were not always treated well by their fellow Guna.

After Spain colonised the region, until the end of the 19th century, the Guna slaughtered their albinos in the misguided belief they were related to their European overlords, said local albino spiritual leader Maximiliano Ferrer.

From the start of the 20th century, a spiritual reformation blossomed among the Guna, who rediscovered their traditional beliefs and a love of their albino offspring.

. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

According to local legend, the first albino sent to the Guna people by their God, Baba or Bab Dummat, was known as Mago, and considered the father of the sun, Ferrer said.

Those who came after Mago are now known as the Children of the Moon, or the Grandchildren of the Sun.

. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Samuel Jimenez, a 57-year-old albino leader on the island of Archutupu, remembers that as a child, his grandmother would make him stay up late during an eclipse to ward off a mythical winged animal the Guna believe would try and gobble up the moon.

"That's why we carry a bow and arrow," he said. "To shoot the beast."

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Slideshow

Diwirgui Martinez, 40, has his hair braided by a child.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Diwirgui Martinez, 40, has his hair braided by a child.

Graselinda Brenes holds her three-year-old son Olowignikaliler Dias.
. GUNA YALA, Panama. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Graselinda Brenes holds her three-year-old son Olowignikaliler Dias.

Jade Morales, 12, does her homework.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Jade Morales, 12, does her homework.

Yaisseth Morales, 11, sits in her classroom.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Yaisseth Morales, 11, sits in her classroom.

Diwirgui Martinez plays dominoes with friends.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Diwirgui Martinez plays dominoes with friends.

Olowignikaliler Dias, 3, holds a mango.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Olowignikaliler Dias, 3, holds a mango.

Diwirgui Martinez walks down the main street.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Diwirgui Martinez walks down the main street.

Children paddle a canoe.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Children paddle a canoe.

Iveily Morales stands by her house.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Iveily Morales stands by her house.

Issac Gonzalez, 16, plays football with his friends.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Issac Gonzalez, 16, plays football with his friends.

Iveily Morales plays inside her house.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Iveily Morales plays inside her house.

Aisha Guerrero, 8 moths old, sits on her aunt's lap.
. PANAMA CITY, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Aisha Guerrero, 8 moths old, sits on her aunt's lap.

An archive picture displayed at the Guna congress on Achutupu island portrays Margarita, a Guna albino, during her visit to Washington in 1924.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

An archive picture displayed at the Guna congress on Achutupu island portrays Margarita, a Guna albino, during her visit to Washington in 1924.

Cuani Paredez, 18, poses for a photograph.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Cuani Paredez, 18, poses for a photograph.

Iveily Morales poses for a photograph.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Iveily Morales poses for a photograph.

Yaixa Huertas, 9, poses for a photograph.
. Guna Yala, PANAMA. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

Yaixa Huertas, 9, poses for a photograph.