Mercy had only seconds to decide on the shocking proposal from a powerful man.

The 28-year-old medical doctor had been promised life-saving cancer treatment by a former government minister she trusted. Yet in return for this seeming generosity, he had a condition: sex.

He explained his belief that by having sex with an albino woman like her, he would be able to cure himself of HIV. In return he would pay for the medical treatment she needed.

“I know I am slowly dying,” Mercy told the Telegraph from her hospital bed. “But I could not accept abusing my body through ritual sex in exchange for medical treatment.”

Mercy, whose name and details have been changed to protect her safety, has the genetic condition which leaves people with little or no melanin in their skin, hair, and eyes.

According to national census data and United Nations estimates, Malawi has one of the highest rates of albinism in the world, with around one in 130 people living with the condition – far higher than the global average of roughly one in 17,000.

Albinism which brings medical and also social complications in much of Africa, including here. In a country of intense sunlight and limited specialist care, the condition leaves many highly vulnerable to skin cancer.

But activists say people with albinism frequently face another danger – one driven by myth, rather than genetics or climate.

In parts of Malawi, a stubborn superstition persists that unprotected sex with a person with albinism can cure HIV/Aids. This belief is leading to a disturbing reality: women with the condition said they are being hunted for sex by men convinced the encounter will cure HIV.

The myth remains widespread despite years of public health campaigns, according to survivors, activists, health officials, and researchers interviewed by the Telegraph.

“The belief that people with albinism are a cure for HIV is exposing them to sexual exploitation and infection,” said Maynard Zacharia, the secretary-general of the Association of Persons with Albinism in Malawi (APAM) . “What is even more disturbing is that some men with albinism themselves believe they cannot contract HIV, and hire themselves out for sex.”

Yet the scale of the epidemic of sexual violence in parts of Malawi is hidden, because reliable statistics are scarce, partly because victims fear stigma, retaliation, or rejection by their families.

Mercy saw the risks herself when the former government minister contacted her recently, offering to arrange treatment in the capital, Lilongwe.

“I was over the moon,” she said. “I thought God had sent an angel, someone in government who could save my life.”

Instead, she added, it was the beginning of a nightmare.

The man arranged her travel and drove her nearly 170 miles from her home in Zomba to Lilongwe. But when they arrived, Mercy realised something was wrong.

She said she was taken to Daeyang Luke Hospital, a facility that does not offer cancer treatment. When she questioned him, the truth emerged.

“He told me he wanted to have sex with me,” she said. “He offered me MK12 million or £5,700, so I could travel abroad for treatment afterwards. I wished I could just die and be done with the pain.”

The former minister did not respond to requests for comment from The Telegraph.

Across parts of eastern and southern Africa, including Tanzania, Mozambique, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, people with albinism have long faced violence linked to superstition. For instance in Tanzania, dozens of people with albinism were killed between 2006 and 2015 in attacks linked to ritual beliefs that their body parts could bring wealth or supernatural power.

Other countries have successfully curbed attacks – in Zimbabwe cases peaked nearly 20 years ago, driven down by a nationwide awareness campaign led by the Zimbabwe National Aids Council.

But in Malawi, human rights groups said similar beliefs tied to HIV myths are now fuelling sexual exploitation and sexual violence – and the situation is getting worse.

Under Malawian law, coercing or deceiving someone into sex in exchange for financial benefit can constitute a criminal offence. Yet campaigners said deception, violence, trafficking and abuse of trust are commonplace by perpetrators.

The exploitation has intensified since 2014, when the country experienced a surge in attacks on people with albinism. Authorities recorded more than 170 crimes, including murders, abductions, and grave robberies, linked to beliefs that their body parts could bring wealth or political power.

The violence exposed the grim truth behind long-standing myths that people with albinism simply “disappeared” when they reached adulthood. In reality, many had been abducted or killed for ritual purposes.

Mr Zacharia said many cases of sexual abuse are committed by people trusted to protect victims, while several men have admitted offering sex to women living with HIV while falsely claiming it could eliminate the virus.

“Girls and women with albinism were often accompanied by relatives, guardians, or even police officers for safety,” he said. “But some of those very people exploited the trust placed in them.”

APAM has documented cases involving uncles, cousins, and law enforcement officers. Last year, an 18-year-old woman from Mchinji district fled her home after being raped by her uncle, whom she believed was HIV-positive.

“I will never trust anyone again,” she told The Telegraph. “I never imagined my own uncle would do this to me.”

Virginia Chimozi is the deputy secretary-general of APAM and herself a survivor, said some individuals with albinism now act as intermediaries, recruiting vulnerable women for influential figures seeking ritual sex.

“We are no longer safe, even from our own,” she said.

Chimozi, a secondary school teacher, added that poverty, discrimination, and fear of stigma prevent many from reporting abuse.

“Some parents fear shame,” she said. “Others fear losing financial support if the perpetrator, often a relative, is arrested.”

One such case involved a 15-year-old girl from Lilongwe whose mother concealed an attempted sexual assault to avoid community backlash. The girl told The Telegraph she had been lured into a neighbour’s house while delivering money.

“He pushed me into the bedroom, turned off the lights, and threatened me,” she said. “I was only saved because someone saw me go inside and became suspicious.”

The superstition not only leaves people face appalling exploitation, it is also a public health disaster as it increases the spread of HIV.

“If left unaddressed, this abuse will increase HIV transmission and expose the albinism community to even greater risk,” said Korrin Moon, head of the anti-trafficking organisation Lantern Rescue. “Deliberately exposing victims to a life-threatening disease is an extreme form of exploitation and a profound violation of human dignity.”

Ms Moon urged the Malawian government to publicly condemn the practice and expand education campaigns to combat HIV myths.

“Sexual violence will never cure HIV/Aids,” she said. “Protecting human life must come before misinformation, fear, or desperation.”

Her concerns are echoed by Beatrice Matenje, chief executive of the Malawi National Aids Commission. She warned that persistent myths are undermining Malawi’s progress in tackling the HIV epidemic.

More than one million people are living with HIV in Malawi, a country of roughly 21 million.

“Malawi has made significant strides, including meeting global 95-95-95 treatment targets,” she said. “But myths like these threaten to reverse those gains and fuel new infections.”

Matenje added that misinformation continues to disrupt treatment programmes.

“Only 58 per cent of children living with HIV are currently on treatment, and many people interrupt or abandon therapy because of myths and misinformation,” she said.

“More worrying still, around 47,000 Malawians are living with HIV without knowing their status, which significantly increases the risk of onward transmission.”

APAM said its own awareness campaigns aimed at dismantling the myth are being hampered by chronic funding shortages.

The Telegraph contacted the Malawi Ministry of Health and the Malawi Police Service for comment, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

Back in her hospital bed in southern Malawi, Mercy said she fears the myth that nearly cost her dignity will continue to endanger others with albinism long after she is gone.

“I refused,” she said quietly. “But many women are desperate, sick, or poor. Someone will eventually believe the lie.”

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