Source: Africa Review
Zimbabwe authorities are holding some 100 illegal immigrants suspected to have been on their way to South Africa. (Photo: Africa Review/ File)
Zimbabwe has arrested 100 people suspected to be illegal immigrants from Malawi in a case that further exposes the porous nature of the Southern African country’s borders.
The Malawians found camping in a house in the border town of Beit Bridge are said to have been on their way to South Africa.
In recent years, Zimbabwe has become a major hub for human trafficking syndicates with hundreds of illegal African immigrants from as far as Somalia and Ethiopia as well as Pakistan and Bangladesh being arrested in the country.
Country’s police spokesman Superintendent Hosiah Mukombero said the Malawian illegal immigrants were netted during an operation involving Zimbabwe, Botswana and South Africa.
“We arrested about 100 Malawian suspects and during the screening process we discovered that 64 of them had no proper travel documents,” he told state media.
“In fact, the exercise which we are carrying out with our Botswana and South African counterparts along our borders is aimed at reducing cases of illegal immigration.
Human trafficking syndicate
In June, police arrested a Kenyan believed to be a ring leader of a human trafficking syndicate while trying to smuggle 12 Somalis to South Africa.
The Somalis were arrested in the resort town of Kariba after they crossed the Zambezi River using canoes.
A United States department report released around the same time listed Zimbabwe among 13 countries – including Iran, North Korea, Burma and Cuba – that had failed to meet minimum international standards in the fight against human trafficking.
Countries covered in the 10 annual global human trafficking report were placed in three categories, according to anti-trafficking performance.
