Botswana a transit for human trafficking
Pini Bothoko | Monday August 28, 2023 06:00
The crime of trafficking in persons is a public security concern around the world and Botswana has not been spared, either as a source or transit route. Even though Botswana is believed to be making significant strides in guarding against a surge in human trafficking, traffickers have marked the country as a new transit route as police statistics indicate.
Existing and emerging wars and conflicts have led to a dramatic development of trafficking in the region. Those living in conflict-affected areas may experience abuse, violence and exploitation, including trafficking in persons and using Botswana as a transit with their destination usually being South Africa.
In environments marked by high levels of violence and abuse, the more frequently reported forms of trafficking in persons include amongst others, trafficking for sexual exploitation, sexual slavery, forced marriages, and trafficking for forced labour.
It is widely acknowledged that trafficking in persons damages the reputation of the SADC region, impacts negatively on its regional integration agenda and depreciates the socio-economic status of the region’s citizens.
Only last week, 67 illegal Pakistani nationals were intercepted at OR Tambo International Airport after failing immigration tests during a sting operation led by the Department of Home Affairs counter-corruption branch, the Hawks, the state security agency and the Border Management Authority. The Pakistan nationals with questionable visas are said to have been on a flight carrying 268 passengers that departed for South Africa from Dubai. Then, it was reported that they were interviewed by immigration officers and asked about where they were going, the purpose of being in South Africa and where they were going to stay given that they were coming for the first time.
It was reported that they provided conflicting information like giving names of non-existent hotels and names of alleged relatives some of whom did not even exist something that forced South Africa to deport them back to Pakistan.
Usually, victims of this scourge who are mostly women and children experience emotional trauma and mental health disorders. These groups are mainly vulnerable as a result of their low social and economic status. However, anyone can be a victim of trafficking in persons depending on the demand that the traffickers will be intending to satisfy.
In an effort to curb this scourge, the Ministry of Justice developed an Anti-Human Trafficking National Action Plan which placed a certain level of reporting accountability on different stakeholders, including the general public.
In Botswana, a cargo truck was intercepted last week attempting to smuggle 40 illegal Ethiopian nationals en route to South Africa at the Ngwasha gate near Nata village.
The truck was intercepted during an operation code-named Osalama, which was led by the Botswana Police Service (BPS) and supported by the Botswana Unified Revenue Service (BURS) and the Department of Immigration and Citizenship.
Interpol is currently conducting enquiries into how they got from Ethiopia, passed through several borders and couldn’t be noticed until they reached Botswana where they were detected during a police roadblock. Then, three men; two Zambians and a Zimbabwean were arrested and appeared before Nata Magistrate’s Court on Monday facing a single count of smuggling in persons.
The trio, Evance Kalulu and Francis Mutale both from Zambia and Artwell Manyeruke from Zimbabwe have been remanded in custody pending investigations. BPS’ deputy public relations officer, Senior Superintendent Near Bagali said through Interpol they are continuing their engagement with the Ethiopian authorities to establish the origin of the Ethiopians.
“The 40 males are two boys aged 10, four aged 12, a 14-year-old, six aged 15, five aged 16, three aged 17, five aged 18 and 14 who are aged more than 18-years. Despite telling us that they are Ethiopians and were from Ethiopia, we are engaging with Ethiopian authorities to establish if they know them.
Moreover, they disclosed that they were heading to South Africa but we have also launched probe to establish what they were going to do in South Africa and where exactly in South Africa,” he said.
Bagali added that following the completion of police investigations, the 40 men will be repatriated back to Ethiopia. Asked how they got into Botswana, the police spokesperson said even though they do not know how the truck managed to get into the country, he can confirm that the truck gained entry through the Kazungula border from Zambia.
“From Ethiopia, they passed through a number of countries and borders to reach Botswana. We do not know how the truck managed to pass through those borders until it was intercepted at Ngwasha gate near Nata village during a stop, question and search operation. Investigations to establish those questions are ongoing,” he said.
Last year, during the commemoration of World Day against Trafficking in Persons which was held in Kazungula, Minister of Justice, Machana Shamukuni said the government ramped up sensitisation and improvement of the justice system’s capacity to deal with issues of human trafficking.
He said recent judgments in human trafficking cases indicated the country was on the right track as there were vast improvements over the lenient sentences of the past. Shamukuni further expressed the hope that the stiff penalties would deter potential traffickers and smugglers.
Moreover, he stressed the need for continued sensitisation of frontline officials, stakeholders and the general public to guarantee early detection of human trafficking. He also expressed the hope that the adoption of the SADC Draft Protocol against Trafficking in Persons would not only buttress the regional approach to combating trafficking in persons but also enhance and elevate national efforts.
Globally, human trafficking dominated cyberspace following an escalation in technology usage mainly due to COVID-19. The pandemic exacerbated human trafficking because crisis situations were breeding grounds for criminals who benefited from chaos, desperation and separation of people from support systems and family members.
Reports state that worldwide more than 60% of detected human trafficking victims over the last 15 years were women and girls with most of them trafficked for sexual exploitation. Moreover, technology is believed to have allowed criminals to operate across jurisdictions and evade detection with greater ease.
Technology fuelled human trafficking as a criminal in one location could target and exploit a vast population. Traffickers use social media and online platforms to identify and exploit victims, deceiving and recruiting them with false promises of better livelihoods. It has also enabled criminals to hide their identities and anonymously spread disturbing material such as child pornography.
However, despite technology fuelling crime it could also be used as a critical tool to fight human trafficking as such law enforcement officers have been urged to leverage technology to aid in investigations and exposing trafficking networks.