Swaziland
is a source, destination, and transit country for men, women, and children who are subjected to sex trafficking, domestic servitude, and forced labour in agriculture, the 2014 Trafficking
in Persons report revealed.
‘Swazi girls, particularly orphans, are subjected to sex trafficking and domestic servitude primarily in the cities of Mbabane
and Manzini; at truck stops, bars, and
brothels in Swaziland; and in South Africa and
Mozambique, the report from the United States
State Department said.
King Mswati III uses forced child labour to work in his
fields. ‘Swazi chiefs may coerce
children and adults—through threats and intimidation—to work for the king.
Swazi boys and foreign children are forced to labor in
commercial
agriculture, including cattle herding, and market vending within the country,’
the report added.
It added, ‘Traffickers utilize
Swaziland as a transit country for
transporting foreign victims from beyond the region to South Africa for forced labor. Some Swazi women are forced into prostitution in South Africa and Mozambique after voluntarily migrating in search of work.’
It concluded, ‘The Government of
Swaziland does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so.’
The report shows
little has changed in Swaziland in human trafficking. In 2009 the US State
Department reported that women and children in the kingdom were bought and sold for sex, domestic servitude and forced labour.
Mbabane and Manzini
were again identified as the centres of trafficking of girls, particularly orphans,
for sex. Swazi boys were
trafficked for forced labour in commercial agriculture and market vending. Some
Swazi women were forced into prostitution in South Africa and Mozambique after
voluntarily travelling to these countries in search of work.
In 2009, the The
International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) reported that a form of serfdom existed in the kingdom ruled by
King Mswati, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch. The report said Swazis
were forced to work without pay on projects determined by local chiefs (who are
appointed by the king). These included agricultural work, soil erosion and
construction and maintenance.
Swazis, seven in
ten who live in abject poverty and earn less than two US dollars a day, are
forced to work under the Swazi Administration Order, No. 6 of 1998, which makes
it a duty of Swazis to obey orders and participate in compulsory works;
participation is enforceable with severe penalties for those who refuse.
In October 2013 it
was reported there were an estimated 1,302 people living in slavery in Swaziland. The report called
the Global Slavery Index 2013 and published by the Walk Free Foundation stated,
‘Modern slavery includes slavery, slavery-like practices (such as debt bondage,
forced marriage, and sale or exploitation of children), human trafficking and
forced labour.’
See also
SWAZILAND ‘HAS 1,302 PEOPLE IN SLAVERY’
http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/10/swaziland-has-1302-people-in-slavery.html
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