27 Aug 2015

A police liaison officer at the Ministry of Defence, Justice and Security, Assistant Commissioner Moore Gondo has said that human trafficking has become a concern to Botswana and the world as a whole.

Presenting on human trafficking during the ongoing Selebi Phikwe Town Council meeting, Mr Gondo explained that human trafficking is the recruitment, transportation, transfer or harbouring of another person by means of threat or use of force or other forms of coercion.

He said in 2012, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) estimated that at any given time, 20.9 million people fall victim to human trafficking, ending up in forced labour. 

He said in 2014, the ILO estimated that the use of forced labour worldwide generated about US$150.2 billion per year in illegal profits.  

For his part, the national crime prevention coordinator senior superintendent Kegakgametse Malete noted that human trafficking occurs in different ways, locally and internationally. She said some of the ways in which it occurs include luring people by promising them good employment and education opportunities through advertisements. 

“Anyone can be affected, and the most vulnerable victims are women, children, the unemployed and to some extent, the elderly for organ harvesting,” she said.   She further indicated that perpetrators of such criminal activities can be individuals, syndicates and organised criminals.

Ms Malete stated that there is a possibility that human trafficking takes place in Botswana. She indicated that a study by SADC was underway to verify the issue. To combat this problem in Botswana, a legislative drafter from the Attorney General’s Chambers, Ms Mary-Ann Mbaeva said Parliament passed the Enactment of the Anti-Human Trafficking Act No.32 of 2014 last year. 

She said the act domesticates the United Nations Protocol to prevent, suppress and punish trafficking in persons, especially women and children.  She explained that Section 9(1) of the act stipulates a fine not exceeding P500 000 or an imprisonment term not exceeding 25 years, or both. 

Further, she indicated that Section 9 (2) provides for a fine not exceeding P1 million or a term not exceeding 30 years if offence under Section 9 (1) is aggravated.Human resource manager at the ministry, Ms Veronica Rabakane, stated that the government is training law enforcement agencies to combat human trafficking.

She said that they are cascading the information on anti-human trafficking to councils country wide.  She said that they have launched media programmes on radio and television to sensitise the public about it. Ends