This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 08 HARARE 000339 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR G/TIP, G, INL, PRM, IWI, AF/RSA, USAID 
AF/S FOR BNEULING 
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR C. COURVILLE, D. TEITELBAUM 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KCRM PHUM KWMN ELAB SMIG ASEC KFRD PREF EAID ZI TIP
SUBJECT: ZIMBABWE ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS REPORT 2004 - 
2005 
 
REF: 04 STATE 273089 
 
¶1.  Overview of a Country's Activities to Eliminate 
Trafficking in Persons: 
----------- 
 
-- A. There continued to be anecdotal reports that Zimbabwe 
was a country of origin and transit for trafficked persons, 
but there is no conclusive evidence to suggest that there is 
a sustained, organized effort to traffic persons.  Reports 
included anecdotes of Zimbabwean girls exchanging sex for 
passage across the South African border, Zimbabwean women 
being lured out of the country with false job promises, 
children being sexually abused by immigration officials of 
neighboring countries during deportation from Botswana and 
South Africa, children working as domestic or agricultural 
workers in Zimbabwe and neighboring countries, and employers 
demanding sex from undocumented Zimbabwean workers in South 
Africa, both adults and children, under the threat of 
deportation. 
 
The Child and Law Foundation conducted a study in Plumtree, 
near the border with Botswana, in 2004 that reinforced 
findings of a CLF report done in Beitbridge, the main South 
African border crossing, in 2003: children were spontaneously 
crossing the border of their own volition out of economic 
necessity and were occasionally being abused during 
deportation back to Zimbabwe.  A Solidarity Peace Trust (SPT) 
study conducted near the border in Musina, South Africa, 
found a few Zimbabwean women working as sex workers; none 
were minors.  Save the Children Norway, Save the Children UK, 
Child Protection Society, and UNICEF found evidence of 
children working within Zimbabwe or in bordering countries as 
domestic or agricultural workers, often unpaid, working 
extensive hours, and without access to schooling. 
 
All of the officials from Zimbabwean government, local 
non-governmental organizations, and international 
organizations interviewed said there are currently no 
reliable statistics on the extent of the problem but also 
said the problem was not widespread, sustained, or organized. 
 
-- B.  There were anecdotal reports that victims were 
trafficked from throughout Zimbabwe to the border areas and 
across the borders into Botswana and South Africa.  There 
were also anecdotal reports that victims were transited 
through Zimbabwe, from Botswana, Ghana, and East Africa, to 
South Africa, but there is no systematic or credible 
reporting to sustain these allegations. The Government has 
launched a crackdown on illegal migrants that includes a 
crackdown on trafficking in persons and human smuggling.  The 
Government arrests all persons identified without legal 
documentation and those individuals facilitating their 
transit.  News reports indicate that illegal migrants are 
transferred Tongogara Refugee Camp pending investigation of 
their situation and return to their home country.  Police say 
that, if there is no evidence that the illegal migrants are 
victims of a crime or have violated Zimbabwean laws other 
than immigration laws, they are deported. 
 
-- C.  No known changes. 
 
-- D.  The Child and Law Foundation (CLF), with support from 
Save the Children Norway, conducted a study at the border 
town of Plumtree, with the cooperation of the Zimbabwe 
Department of Immigration, who facilitated access to 
officials.  The study was completed in November 2004, and 
reinforced the findings of CLF,s 2003 Beitbridge study. 
Both CLF,s studies were both based on interviews with 
children and provided anecdotal evidence of limited, sporadic 
trafficking. 
 
The International Organization of Migration (IOM) conducted 
an extensive study on trafficking in southern Africa in 2003 
that did not include Zimbabwe.  IOM has plans to conduct an 
additional regional study within the next two years that will 
include Zimbabwe.  The study will better define the extent 
and nature of trafficking patterns in the region, including 
in Zimbabwe.  IOM is currently seeking funding to conduct 
this study. 
 
-- E.  There were no reports that Zimbabwe was a destination 
point for internationally trafficked victims. 
 
-- F.  Anecdotal information suggests that Zimbabweans, who 
spontaneously emigrate seeking a better life across the 
border, are exploited while in a neighboring country or when 
being deported. There is also a problem of child labor within 
Zimbabwe, due to the country,s economic difficulties and its 
high number of HIV/AIDS orphans. 
 
Save the Children UK says the organization has no evidence 
that organized trafficking rings are transporting children 
across the border. CLF,s study, based on interviews with 
children who had crossed into Botswana, found that several 
types of children cross the border looking for employment, 
some of whom seek out and receive the assistance of 
cross-border traffickers: HIV/AIDS orphans living alone or 
who can not access social services due to the lack of a birth 
certificate, children with family or friends across the 
border, and children who cross with a group. The children 
were occasionally victims of sexual exploitation from 
neighboring countries, officials during deportation.  CLF,s 
2003 Beitbridge study found that girls, hoping for better 
economic opportunities in South Africa, would hitch rides 
into South Africa or the border town of Beitbridge in 
exchange for sex with truck drivers. Some girls and women 
would remain in the area of Beitbridge after returning from 
South Africa and work as prostitutes due to lack of funds to 
return to their homes in Zimbabwe. 
 
A November 2004 Solidarity Peace Trust study reports that 
Zimbabweans, including minors living illegally in South 
Africa are sometimes victimized by employers, police, or 
immigration officials who demand sexual favors in order not 
to be deported. The study also reports that Zimbabweans are 
vulnerable to wage exploitation under the threat of 
deportation. 
 
Officials from the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) ) Criminal 
Investigative Division (CID) report that Zimbabweans are also 
lured to other countries (primarily the UK, but also the 
United States, South Africa, and other African countries) 
with false promises of jobs. Upon arrival in the destination 
country, they are then debt-bonded, have their passports 
taken away and their movements restricted, and they are 
exploited in sweatshop labor or brothels. Even when these 
victims are in a position to seek help, they often hesitate 
going to police in those countries, for fear of being 
deported. CID officials usually learned of these cases when 
the victims were assisted by citizens in the destination 
countries and eventually returned home. 
 
-- G. The GOZ appears to have the political will to combat 
trafficking. Officials in the ZRP, Attorney General,s 
Office, Department of Immigration, Ministry of Foreign 
Affairs, and Ministry of Social Welfare all expressed in 
public the government,s determination to combat trafficking. 
 NGOs and international organizations that deal with 
trafficking in persons and who have studies or projects 
planned for 2005 have said the government supports their 
efforts and cooperates with them.  Immigration officials 
facilitated the research conducted by CLF. 
 
Government actions this year increased over last year. The 
government initiated a highly-publicized crackdown on 
prostitution in 2004 that included publishing the names of 
pimps and clients. In the area of prevention, the government 
is working with an orphanage that has received funding from 
the Government of Canada to provide schooling and vocational 
training to orphans at risk of child labor and trafficking in 
persons. The government increased the budget for a program to 
pay for school fees for other at-risk children. The state-run 
media have run articles on trafficking in persons to alert 
Zimbabweans to the dangers. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs 
plans to distribute information to Zimbabweans abroad on 
employment scams and how to seek help if they are victims. In 
the area of prosecution and law enforcement, the attorney 
general,s office is developing a training program for 
prosecutors and judges. Police and immigration officials 
participated in regional meetings, both for training purposes 
and to facilitate regional cooperation. In the area of 
protection of victims, the Ministry of Public Service, Social 
Welfare, and Labor is constructing a center at the border 
town of Beitbridge to assist deportees to return to their 
homes, including counseling for those who are victims of 
sexual exploitation. Government officials have identified 
awareness-raising and identification of the extent of the 
problem as necessary first steps for ever greater government 
action on this issue. 
 
-- H. There was no evidence that any government officials 
facilitated or condoned trafficking. 
 
-- I.  Zimbabwe,s economy remains in turmoil, with 
triple-digit inflation and the collapse of commercial 
agriculture. With a 25% HIV infection rate, there are an 
estimated million HIV/AIDS orphans. As long as the economy 
remains in turmoil, there will be limited resources to expand 
anti-trafficking activities beyond those undertaken this 
year. 
 
--J. The government has designated a single point of contact 
in the ZRP for anti-trafficking efforts. ZRP and Department 
of Immigration officials participate in regional 
anti-trafficking workshops where they discuss government 
efforts. It shares information and cooperates with Interpol 
and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (see 1.G.). 
 
--K.  Prostitution is illegal in Zimbabwe, and the activities 
of prostitutes, brothel owners, pimps, and clients are 
criminalized.  A police crackdown on prostitution in 2004 was 
given prominent coverage in the state-run media, with several 
articles throughout the year appearing in the newspapers, 
including publication of the names of clients arrested in 
police operations. 
 
¶2. Prevention: 
-------- 
 
-- A. The government recognizes that trafficking in persons 
exists.  However, as trafficking is accompanied by other 
criminal offenses, many instances were never identified as 
trafficking per se but were nonetheless prosecuted. The 
government recognizes the need to identify the extent of 
trafficking and to conduct a public awareness campaign as 
important steps in prevention and is making appropriate plans 
to do so. 
 
-- B. The ZRP, Department of Immigration (Ministry of Home 
Affairs), and Ministry of Justice are responsible for law 
enforcement aspects of anti-trafficking efforts. The Ministry 
of Public Service, Social Welfare, and Labor and the Ministry 
of Education have prevention programs to provide alternatives 
to children at risk. 
 
-- C. The police have instituted crackdowns against 
prostitution in the cities, publishing names of brothel 
owners, pimps, and clients in the state-run media. In 
addition to prominent coverage of prostitution crackdowns, 
the state-run media prominently features articles about 
trafficking in persons, describing employment scams and other 
types of trafficking in persons. For example, the local press 
prominently featured multiple stories about the case of 
Zimbabwean women murdered in Kenya after responding to a 
false employment scam that promised jobs in Canada. 
 
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is developing a notice to 
Zimbabwean embassies to inform Zimbabweans abroad of common 
types of trafficking and how victims can seek help. 
 
-- D. The government has several programs to support children 
in groups at high risk for trafficking and child labor. One 
problem many children encounter is the lack of a birth 
certificate, which is generally necessary in accessing social 
services. Parents do not always apply for birth certificates 
immediately upon a child,s birth due to the need to travel 
to the provincial capital as previously required. Many 
orphans have found themselves with no birth certificates and 
no way of registering for themselves. In 2004, the government 
opened new birth registration centers around the country to 
make it easier for parents to register their children. 
 
In 2005, the Government has budgeted 190 billion ZWD 
(approximately $30 million USD) for its Basic Education 
Assistance Module (BEAM) program, designed to keep at-risk 
children in school. Zimbabwe,s public schools, although not 
charging tuition, do charge some fees, and students must 
purchase their books and uniforms. BEAM pays school fees and 
related expenses including books and uniforms for 
underprivileged children and AIDS orphans. The program has 
been under funded (only 3.5 billion ZWD spent in 2004) and 
has not met its targets in previous years. 
 
The Ministries of Education, Home Affairs, and Public 
Service, Labor, and Social Welfare also provide support to a 
children,s home with a vocational training program funded by 
the government of Canada. The home caters mainly for orphan 
children and provides both formal schooling and vocational 
training to these children, who are deemed at high risk of 
becoming victims of child labor and trafficking in persons. 
The Ministry of Education accredited the primary school and 
has just approved accreditation for a secondary school to be 
established at the home. The Ministries of Education, Public 
Service, and Home Affairs are developing a curriculum for the 
vocational skills program. Police officers refer children 
identified as orphans to the Department of Social Welfare 
(within the Ministry of Public Service). Social Welfare 
verifies the children are orphans and accompanies them to the 
home. 
 
-- E.  The BEAM program has been under funded in the past. 
The government relies on other, low-cost methods such as 
campaigns in the state-run media, and works with NGOs in 
providing social services. (See also 1.i.) 
 
-- F.  NGOs that run programs such as orphanages and sexual 
abuse programs, or that conduct research, require government 
cooperation. The Ministry of Education must accredit any 
program providing formal education, for example. CLF obtained 
Department of Immigration assistance with conducting its 
research on child border crossers.  In general, cooperation 
is good. 
 
-- G.  There are checkpoints at all of Zimbabwe,s major 
border crossings. The Department of Immigration monitors 
evidence of trafficking but does not maintain statistics. The 
ZRP has attempted to investigate instances of trafficking 
that have come to its attention (see 3.f.). 
-- H.  An official in the ZRP is designated point of contact 
for anti-trafficking efforts. ZRP and Department of 
Immigration officials liaise on anti-trafficking issues. 
-- I.  The government participates in an Interpol southern 
Africa law enforcement working group that meets quarterly and 
discusses trafficking in persons, among other law enforcement 
issues. The government co-hosted one regional working 
meeting, including police and immigration officials in 
neighboring countries and officials from international 
organization and local NGOs. The government is participating 
in development of a regional action plan. See also 3.g. 
 
-- J.  The government does not yet have a national plan of 
action. However, the ZRP and Department of Immigration are 
participating in regional workshops to  develop a regional 
plan of action. See also 3.g. 
 
-- K.  The government,s point of contact for trafficking in 
persons is in the ZRP-CID. The Ministry of Home Affairs, 
which includes both ZRP and the Department of Immigration, 
has taken the lead in Zimbabwe,s regional coordination. The 
Ministry of Justice is responsible for training programs for 
the courts. The Ministry of Public Service, Labor, and Social 
Welfare is responsible for all social services programs. 
 
¶3.  Investigation and Prosecution of Traffickers: 
---------- 
 
-- A. Trafficking-related crimes are currently addressed 
under other legislation, primarily the Sexual Offences Act, 
the Children,s Protection and Adoption Act, and the 
Immigration Act. These laws criminalize transporting people 
across the border for sex, corruption of children and 
allowing children to reside in or to frequent a brothel, 
allowing children to consort with or be employed by 
prostitutes, and forgery of travel documents. The 
constitution provides that &no one may be held in slavery or 
servitude or be made to perform forced or compulsory labor.8 
In addition, the common law prohibits abduction and forced 
labor.  No new legislation was enacted in the past year. 
 
Victim Friendly Courts (VFC) were specifically created in 
1997 to accommodate children and sexual offenses victims. A 
trafficked person has the option to take his or her case 
before the VFC. 
 
-- B. Corruption of children is punishable by a fine, up to 
two years in prison, or both. Procuring a person for 
prostitution, inside or outside of Zimbabwe, is punishable by 
a fine, up to ten years in prison, or both. Exploitation of 
children, inside or outside of Zimbabwe, is a crime, but 
there is no specified penalty in the legislation; instead, 
the presiding Magistrate decides sentencing. (see also 3.l.). 
 
-- C.  Incarceration is mandatory for convictions for rape or 
forcible sexual assault. There is no minimum penalty. 
Sentences usually vary from four years to fifteen years, 
depending on the circumstances of the crime. 
 
-- D. Trafficking cases in Zimbabwe are prosecuted as other 
crimes and are therefore not tracked as trafficking cases, 
and there are no reliable statistics. However, the ZRP does 
investigate cases of trafficking (see 3.f.), and the 
government has prosecuted migrant smugglers and other 
traffickers (see 3.e.). 
 
We are unaware of any allegations that the ZRP has failed to 
investigate possible trafficking cases that had come to its 
attention. 
 
-- E.  There was no information that any organized groups 
coerced victims into forced labor or prostitution in 
Zimbabwe. There were no reports that government officials 
were involved. 
Police discovered a crime syndicate in Zimbabwe producing 
fake Congolese and Gabonese passports for migrant smugglers 
transiting people through Zimbabwe. Police also discovered a 
migrant smuggling syndicate involving Air Zimbabwe employees; 
the employees were arrested and prosecuted. 
 
CLF and Solidarity Peace Trust,s findings show that 
Zimbabwean victims near the border are often exploited by 
truck drivers, employers, and brothel owners taking advantage 
of migrants, economic desperation (see 1.f.). 
 
There is no evidence suggesting the involvement of government 
officials in trafficking. 
 
-- F.  Law enforcement investigated an organized crime 
syndicate producing fake passports and another syndicate 
involved in migrant smuggling (see 3.e.). 
 
The ZRP actively investigates false employment scams with 
police posing as job applicants. In each instance, police 
reported that they arrived at the location advertised after 
the operation had moved. They said they believed that the 
traffickers would place an ad and set up shop for only a day 
then move on and place a different ad, limiting the risk of 
investigation. 
 
The ZRP also reported a case of two Pakistani girls who were 
brought to Zimbabwe where, together with two ethnic Indian 
Zimbabwean girls, they were victimized by a pornography ring. 
Efforts to investigate foundered when the victims, parents 
refused to cooperate with the investigation, apparently to 
avoid stigmatization.  Police reported that similar 
investigations have been thwarted by the uncooperative 
posture of putative victims and their families. 
 
-- G.  Police and immigration officials attended regional 
meetings and workshops on the subject of trafficking in 
persons. The government, jointly with Interpol,s Subregional 
Bureau for Southern Africa, hosted a Regional Working Meeting 
on Trafficking in Persons in November, attended by police and 
immigration officials from the region and representatives of 
international organizations and one local NGO that deals with 
children,s issues.  The meeting focused on regional 
cooperation between law enforcement and NGOs in different 
countries to conduct investigations, identify victims, and 
provide care for victims, and Interpol presented the 
resources that it has available for law enforcement in 
Zimbabwe and other countries. At the meeting, the ZRP 
presented a list of recommendations for the government on 
cooperation, enacting anti-TIP legislation, and conducting 
bilateral investigations to track trafficking across borders. 
 
Prosecutors and magistrates in the Victim Friendly Courts 
receive special training in handling victims of abuse. 
 
The Attorney General,s office is developing an anti-TIP 
education program for prosecutors and judges to help address 
TIP-related issues in prosecutions under existing law. 
 
The government sought and received a training manual from 
Interpol,s subdirectorate for Trafficking in Human Beings on 
carrying out investigations into trafficking in persons. 
 
A local NGO, Connect, plans to provide training to Zimbabwean 
police to identify and document cases of trafficking. 
 
The International Organization of Migration (IOM) and 
Interpol plan to conduct a series of capacity building 
workshops for government officials. 
 
-- H.  No specific cases were confirmed. 
Police and immigration officials interacted with Interpol and 
police and immigration from other countries in the region 
(see 3.g.). The government is collaborating on a Southern 
African Development Community (SADC) effort with IOM and the 
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime to develop a 
regional declaration on trafficking in persons and to develop 
a plan of action. The plan of action would focus first on 
assessment of the scope and nature of the problem in the 
region then on developing anti-TIP legislation that would 
facilitate cooperation on investigations. 
 
-- I.  There were no reports of extraditions or requests of 
extradition from Zimbabwe to other countries. There were no 
reports of Zimbabweans charged with trafficking in other 
countries. The government has extradition treaties with 
countries in the region. 
 
-- J.  There is no evidence of any government involvement in 
or tolerance of trafficking at any level. 
 
-- K.  Not applicable; see 3.j. 
 
-- L. There is no known child sex tourism problem. Sections 
of the Sexual Offences Act that pertain to children apply to 
Zimbabweans, activities outside of the country. 
Specifically, a Zimbabwean engaging in activities that, under 
the SOA, are deemed exploitation of children, conspiracy to 
exploit children, or inciting another person to exploit 
children can be prosecuted under the SOA regardless of the 
location of the activities. 
 
-- M. The government ratified ILO Convention 182 on December 
11, 2000.  The government ratified ILO Conventions 29 and 105 
on August 27, 1998.  The government has not signed the 
Optional Protocol to the CRC on the sale of children.  The 
government has not signed the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress 
and Punish Trafficking in Persons. 
 
¶4.  Protection and Assistance to Victims: 
------- 
 
-- A.  The government (through the Ministry of Public Service 
and Department of Immigration) is constructing, with funds 
from Save the Children Norway, a transit center at 
Beitbridge. The center will assist young deportees traveling 
from South Africa who, according to anecdotal evidence, are 
often victims of abuse and sometimes resort to prostitution 
because they do not have the funds to return to their homes. 
The center will provide temporary shelter for up to three 
days, counseling services, and assistance in returning home. 
Workers will also contact the social welfare offices in the 
children,s home areas to ensure they return to school. The 
Beitbridge Child Protection Community published its plan for 
the center in January. 
 
-- B.  No specific victims of trafficking were identified 
within Zimbabwe. The government cooperates with Connect, 
which provides family counseling, and is working with Save 
the Children Norway on the Beitbridge Center (see 4.a.). The 
government facilitated access to CLF for its Beitbridge and 
Plumtree studies. 
 
-- C.  No specific victims of trafficking were identified. 
According to news reports, foreigners suspected of being 
illegal immigrants, which could include trafficking victims, 
are transferred to Tongogara refugee camp (a United Nations 
camp run by an NGO) pending further investigation. 
The government is establishing a center to assist young 
Zimbabweans deported from South Africa (see 4.a.). 
 
-- D.  Victims of existing laws related to child or domestic 
abuse are treated with special procedures in the Victim 
Friendly Courts. Suspected illegal immigrants are transferred 
to Tongogara refugee camp pending investigation but may have 
been arrested initially (see 4.c.). 
 
-- E.  No victims of trafficking were identified. In at least 
one case, suspected victims of trafficking would not 
cooperate with a police investigation (see 3.f.). 
 
-- F. In the Victim Friendly Courts, the alleged perpetrator 
cannot see or hear the victim in proceedings. 
 
-- G.  The Attorney General,s office is developing a 
training curriculum for prosecutors and judges to help 
address TIP-related issues in prosecutions under existing law 
(see 3.g.). 
 
The Government sought and received training manuals for law 
enforcement from Interpol (see 3.g.). 
 
-- H.  The government is constructing a center at Beitbridge 
to assist deportees from South Africa, with special services 
for victims of sexual exploitation (see 4.a.). 
 
Police and MFA officials say anecdotal evidence suggests that 
victims abroad are reluctant to seek assistance from their 
embassies, for fear of coming to the attention of authorities 
in the host country that could deport them. Instead, victims 
receive assistance within their communities abroad, sometimes 
returning to Zimbabwe. Officials sometimes hear about 
returned victims but they say they do not receive enough 
information to follow up. Both the police and MFA have 
identified a public awareness campaign as an important step 
in assisting with identification of victims and requested 
assistance from Interpol and other international sources with 
such a campaign. 
 
-- I.  Save the Children Norway, the Child and Law 
Foundation, Connect, the Child Protection Society, and UNICEF 
all deal in children,s issues. They all study the problems 
of child labor and/or trafficking. Several small 
organizations deal with domestic violence and run shelters. 
CLF and Connect report cooperation from the government in 
gaining access to officials while conducting their 
activities. The International Organization for Migration 
office in Pretoria, South Africa has a trafficking in persons 
point of contact for the region and coordinates with IOM,s 
Harare office as needed. There are plans to add an anti-TIP 
position to the IOM Harare office. 
 
¶5.  Post point of contact for trafficking in persons is 
Bianca Menendez; office phone 263-4-250-593, extension 291; 
fax 263-4-253-000; e-mail menendezbe@state.gov.  The 
estimated hours spent per officer in preparation of this 
report are as follows:  polasst 3 hours, poloff 35 hours, 
polchief 15 hours, DCM 1 hour review, AMB 1 hour review. 
DELL