Zimbabwe’s main airport, the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport (RGMI) in Harare, has reportedly become a human trafficking hotspot.
It is alleged that human trafficking syndicates made up of State security agents and political heavyweights are facilitating illegal entry into the country for foreign nationals en route to South Africa.
The Standard reported that state security details at the airport were worried that agencies such as the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) were ignoring reports of illegal entry through the airport.
A Military Intelligence Department (MID) operative who was deployed at the airport was allegedly arrested recently on suspicion of conniving with immigration officers to facilitate the illegal entry of four Indian officials into the country. Said the source:
The Indian nationals were intercepted by MID and the taxi driver, who was transporting them implicated a member of MID who was stationed at the airport.
People involved in this brag that nothing will happen to them as they have the protection of their bosses.
Four immigration officials were reportedly arrested for their alleged involvement in the scandal.
Respect Gono, the Immigration Department director-general, told The Standard that mainly Pakistanis and Ethiopians were being trafficked. She said:
We have Pakistan and Ethiopian nationals mainly being trafficked into the country, giving us problems.
The majority of them are going to South Africa in search of greener pastures.
South Africa has stringent measures, so Ethiopians prefer to come via Zimbabwe.
We currently have no global management system, which can track these activities.
But we are expecting to launch it soon.
When that system is now in place you will see things improving.
Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi told The Standard he was not aware of reports of human trafficking at the RGMI Airport. He said:
This is the first time I heard that there is a problem of human trafficking at the airport.
Firstly, I want to find out and secondly, if there are such reports then we should have those people who have the information come forward and report so that investigations can be conducted.