A joint operation by South Africa’s Border Management Authority (BMA) and other law enforcement agencies has thwarted a massive human trafficking ring that attempted to smuggle 443 children from Zimbabwe to South Africa in 42 buses.
The children, aged between eight and 18, were found without any parent or guardian on Saturday at the Beitbridge border post, one of the busiest land crossings in Africa. They were allegedly being trafficked for various purposes, including sexual exploitation, forced labor, and domestic servitude.
The BMA commissioner, Michael Masiapato, revealed the details of the operation during a festive season border control briefing on Sunday in Pretoria. He said the BMA, in collaboration with the police, the anti-corruption team, and the Zimbabwean officials, was able to stop and search the buses and rescue the children.
“We were able to take them out of those buses and engage with the Zimbabwe officials and we handed them back to Zimbabwe for processing [back] into the country,” he said.
Masiapato also highlighted other achievements of the BMA, which became fully operational on April 1, 2023, as the third law enforcement authority in South Africa. He said the BMA had arrested more than 44,000 people since April for trying to enter the country illegally, refused entry to more than 90,000 people for various reasons, and investigated and prosecuted some allegedly complicit government officials.
The BMA, which operates under schedule 3 (A) of the Public Finance Management Act, is tasked with securing the borders, promoting safe travel, and facilitating trade. It has consolidated and coordinated various border law enforcement agencies under a single command and control structure.
The launch of the BMA was officiated by President Cyril Ramaphosa on October 5, 2023, in the border town of Musina. He said the BMA was a “game-changer” for the country and the region, as it would enhance border security, streamline trade facilitation, and improve the travel experience for all.
Human trafficking is a global problem that affects millions of people, especially women and children. According to the US State Department’s 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report, South Africa is a source, transit, and destination country for human trafficking, with victims and perpetrators often not being accurately counted.
The report said South Africa did not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but was making significant efforts to do so. It commended the government for increasing investigations and convictions of traffickers, adopting an anti-trafficking national action plan, accrediting two shelters, and expanding awareness-raising activities.
However, it also noted some challenges, such as the lack of coordination among agencies responsible for identifying, referring, and certifying trafficking victims, the inappropriate penalization of victims for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked, and the reports of low-level official complicity in trafficking crimes.
The report urged South Africa to ensure victims are not inappropriately penalized, increase efforts to investigate, prosecute, and convict officials complicit in trafficking crimes and traffickers within organized crime syndicates, promulgate and implement the immigration provisions in the Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act, and provide adequate funding and training for the BMA and other relevant stakeholders.
The BMA’s successful operation at the Beitbridge border post is a positive sign of the government’s commitment to combat human trafficking and protect the rights and dignity of the victims. It also demonstrates the potential of the BMA to transform the border management landscape in South Africa and the region, creating a safer and more prosperous environment for all.
Source: New Zimbabwe
