Fresh trauma arrives with every election season in Tanzania for 42-year-old Mariam Staford. For most, the fiesta-like rallies and songs, along with the campaign messages, signal a chance for people to make their voice heard. But for those with albinism, they bring terror. Warning: This article contains details of graphic violence that some people may find upsetting. The first thing that comes to me is fear, Mariam tells the BBC as people prepare to vote for a president and parliament on Wednesday. I know that killings of people with albinism happen especially at election time in Tanzania, when witchcraft beliefs intensify. That's why I don't take part in campaigns… I am so afraid. Albinism, which affects an estimated 30,000 people in Tanzania, is a rare genetic condition that reduces melanin - the pigment that gives color to skin, eyes, and hair. Superstition has made those with the condition targets. The false belief that body parts of people with albinism bring wealth, luck, or political success have driven attacks and killings across Tanzania. Activists say such assaults intensify in the run-up to an election as people vie for political influence. Mariam knows what this danger looks and feels like personally. In 2008, one of the bloodiest years for people with albinism in Tanzania as preparations for local elections were under way, machete-wielding men stormed into her bedroom in Kagera, a north-western border region. They came at a late hour of the night, cut off my right hand [from above the elbow] and took it away, and then they also cut off my left hand. The next day I was taken to a dispensary, unconscious, and the doctor who saw me said: 'This person is already dead, take her back home and bury her'. Against the odds, Mariam survived; but she was five months pregnant and her unborn child did not. The attack not only left her with permanent disabilities but forced her to abandon Kagera, one of the epicenters of ritualistic killings of people with albinism at the time. She eventually resettled in the relative peace of Kilimanjaro region, where a rights group for people with albinism, Under the Same Sun, built her a house and trained her to use a knitting machine. She now makes sweaters. Seventeen years on, the trauma has not faded. Even now, I sometimes dream of that night, Mariam says. When I wake up, I touch my arms and remember they are not there. It is something I will never escape. What happened to Miriam was one of scores of attacks targeting people with albinism and their body parts. Under The Same Sun says there have been 211 such incidents in Tanzania since 2008, including 79 deaths and 100 people mutilated but survived. Despite government crackdowns, awareness initiatives, and community outreach, attacks persist, particularly as elections draw nearer. Mariam, who chooses to avoid voting due to her distrust in the system, remains a poignant example of the ongoing struggle faced by people with albinism as they navigate fear and violence in pursuit of safety and recognition.