Five Zimbabweans arrested for trafficking children in Botswana; 16 kids rescued

By Channel Africa

In what is becoming a major concern, five Zimbabwean men have been arrested in Botswana for child trafficking.

The arrests took place after police intercepted five separate vehicles, each carrying undocumented children believed to be from Zimbabwe and on their way to South Africa.

The 16 rescued children are being kept at a social protection unit in Francistown, Botswana’s second largest city.

This isn’t the first incident of child trafficking involving Zimbabweans. Last December, the South African Border Management Agency intercepted buses carrying more than 400 young children from Zimbabwe without parents or legal guardians as part of an anti-trafficking operation, according to Superintendent Oteng Nganga, Station Commander at Matsiloje Police Station in Gaborone

When explaining details of the incident, Nganga said the children are exposed to inhumane environment while trafficked while travelling for long distances while not sitting comfortably.

“It was a traumatising experience, the children, including a four-year-old girl, were crammed into a poorly ventilated, dark vehicle, he said

North East District Council Botswana confirmed that funds have been availed by the government to fend for the children while the search for their biological parents continues.