TIP: SAG COOPERATION INCREASES UNDERSTANDING OF

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 PRETORIA 004390

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR G/TIP:RYOUSEY/NEUMANN, INL/AAE, AF/S

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM EAID KCRM KJUS KWMN CVIS SF
SUBJECT: TIP: SAG COOPERATION INCREASES UNDERSTANDING OF
TRAFFICKING PATTERNS

REF: PRETORIA 4353


1. (SBU) The International Organization for Migration (IOM)
released new information on trafficking patterns involving
South Africa, based on information obtained following the
increased awareness and cooperation of local law enforcement
and non-governmental organizations. Overall, IOM has seen an
increase in African victims and children (aged 13 to 18)
seeking help through its victim assistance programs. The
major African patterns are from Mozambique and Malawi to
South Africa. China and Thailand are the major sources of
victims from Asia, and Bulgarians dominate trafficking from
Eastern Europe to South Africa. South Africa is also a
source of trafficked women to Europe, Hong Kong, and Macau.
West African syndicates are involved with the European
pattern. The Triads control the traffic to Hong Kong and
Macau. While this information confirms that South Africa has
a trafficking problem, IOM's expanded knowledge of these
patterns reflects the increased awareness and cooperation of
law enforcement officials and local NGOs.

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Introduction
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2. (U) This is the second of two reports on the
International Organization for Migration's October 20th
briefing on trafficking in persons in the Southern African
Development Community (SADC) region. Reftel described the
increased cooperation IOM's anti-trafficking campaign is
receiving from South African law enforcement, media, and
non-governmental organizations (NGOs). This cable details
information that IOM's ongoing research project has learned
about trafficking patterns into and from South Africa, much
of which was obtained as a result of this increased awareness
and cooperation.


3. (U) IOM has been active in South Africa since 1999 and
began researching trafficking within the SADC countries in

2002. According to IOM, at that time law enforcement
throughout the region was aware of neither the nature of
trafficking nor the scope of the problem. The results of
IOM's research were published in a 2003 report, the first of
its kind in the region, that was distributed to 30,000 people
in three printings. IOM has since expanded its research
program, meeting with NGOs that assist prostitutes and
interviewing victims at IOM's shelters and when visiting
brothels in Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Harare.


4. (U) These continuing research efforts have shed new light
on several distinct trafficking patterns involving South
Africa as both a source and destination country. IOM is
unable to estimate the numbers of victims involved in each
pattern. However, IOM has seen an increase in the number of
African victims seeking help through its victim assistance
programs in South Africa. Most victims are aged between 21
and 35, but there is also an increase among child victims
aged 13 to 18. Most of the false job offers used to entice
African victims were for domestic and restaurant work.
Details of the specific patterns discovered follow below.

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Mozambique to South Africa
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5. (SBU) IOM believes there are two major criminal
operations, both involving South African men and Mozambican
men and women, managing trafficking from Mozambique to South
Africa. Recruitment uses two methods. First, victims are
enticed with false job offers. Second, traffickers target
female taxi passengers already traveling to South Africa.
Border crossings are generally legal and follow two main taxi
routes, the first going from Maputo to Komatipoort to
Johannesburg, and the second from Maputo to Ponta d'Ouvre to
Johannesburg or Durban. Once in South Africa, the victims
are taken to safe houses in the Nkomazi area near the borders
with Mozambique and Swaziland. Victims are informed of their
true situation and intimidated (often involving rape). The
victims are then sold to brothels for about 1,000 Rand
(approximately 150 dollars),sold to rural men as wives for
650 Rand (approximately 100 dollars),or taken to housing
compounds to service mine workers.

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Malawi to South Africa
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6. (SBU) IOM thinks this pattern operates on a much smaller
scale and is run by individual truck drivers rather than
sophisticated criminal syndicates. The truck drivers recruit
rural girls (generally aged 15-18) in Malawi with promises of
education or jobs. The truckers frequently rape the victims
in transit. Unlike the Mozambique pattern, border crossings
are irregular and often illegal. Victims are usually
delivered directly to South African buyers or sometimes
pimped by the traffickers to other truckers.
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Refugee Pattern
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7. (SBU) This pattern is especially prevalent in Cape Town.
Unemployed men with refugee status in South Africa turn to
trafficking women from their home countries. The victims are
usually female relatives who are promised jobs in South
Africa. Borders are crossed using both legal and illegal
means. The traffickers then register the victims with Home
Affairs and complete applications for asylum to protect their
investment from deportation. The victims are especially
dependent on the traffickers given the family bonds. Victims
are sexually initiated and intimidated by either the
trafficker or customers from the same ethnic group. They are
then put to work as street prostitutes, usually with a 250
Rand (approximately 40 dollars) nightly quota.

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China to South Africa
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8. (SBU) Most of the Chinese victims of trafficking in South
Africa come from the southern provinces of Guangdong and
Fujian. The traffickers are the "snake heads" who smuggle
and traffic Chinese to the United States. As in the U.S.,
the victims arrive on planes in Johannesburg without travel
documents. However, instead of requesting asylum like in the
U.S., the victims voluntarily leave South Africa for
Swaziland, Mozambique, or Lesotho. They then re-enter South
Africa illegally through the land borders. Once in South
Africa, the victims owe the snake heads 75 to 100 thousand
Rand (approximately 12 to 15 thousand dollars) for travel
expenses through a "debt bond." They are then intimidated
into working the debt off as prostitutes. Most of the
brothels involved in this pattern are reserved for Chinese
customers from the local community or Chinese merchant
sailors.

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Thailand to South Africa
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9. (SBU) Thais dominate among Asians seeking IOM's help in
South Africa. The traffickers are often either previously
trafficked women themselves or South African men, "pretty
woman traffickers," who promise marriage. However, IOM
believes these small scale traffickers are supported by
Chinese triads and Thai organized crime groups. Most of the
victims are between the ages of 25-35. As with the China
pattern, the victims are debt bonded to the traffickers for
50 to 60 thousand Rand (approximately 7.5 to 9 thousand
dollars). The traffickers then increase their profits
further by selling or leasing the victims to brothels for 15
to 35 thousand Rand (approximately three to five thousand
dollars) The victims are often imprisoned in safe houses
managed by a Thai "mama san" when not at work. IOM has found
this Thai pattern in both rural and urban areas in six South
African provinces.

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Eastern Europe to South Africa
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10. (SBU) Bulgarians dominate the East Europeans IOM is
seeing at shelters. The traffickers are usually members of
either the Russian or Bulgarian mafias. The victims are
generally educated but poor women who are recruited with
phony waitress job offers. South African visas are
fraudulently obtained in Russia. They are debt bonded for 12
to 15 thousand dollars. The traffickers are exceptionally
violent and not only intimidate victims with rape and
beatings, but also threaten the victims' families.

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South Africa to Europe
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11. (SBU) IOM identified the following pattern in Malawi,
but has seen South African victims in Europe who were
trafficked in the same manner. Professional women recruit
teenagers for work in Europe. The victims are given
fraudulently obtained South African passports, which usually
take two weeks to arrange. They are kept in safe houses
while waiting to depart. The traffickers avoid the major
international airports because of suspicious officials. Once
in Europe the victims are sold, usually to a West African
syndicate for 10 thousand dollars. As with the China
pattern, the victims owe 40 thousand dollars for travel
expenses, and the only way to pay off the traffickers is by
agreeing to work as a prostitute.

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South Africa to Hong Kong/Macau
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12. (SBU) South African men with ties to both the local sex
industry and the triads serve as recruiters for this pattern.
They earn 500 dollars for each recruit. The victims are
usually strippers or prostitutes in Johannesburg. As with
Chinese trafficked to South Africa, victims owe a debt bond.
They are sold to "saunas" in Macau and Hong Kong for 10 to 20
thousand dollars. The triads also get victims hooked on hard
drugs to supplement intimidation with control.

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Comment
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13. (SBU) These patterns confirm that South Africa suffers
from a significant trafficking problem. However, the depth
of IOM's understanding of these patterns is a sign of
progress. Many of the brothels IOM visits to collect
information were first identified by South African law
enforcement officers attending IOM's training sessions. This
willingness of working level detectives to share information
illustrates how ongoing training programs are increasing
South African law enforcement's awareness of and capability
to handle the trafficking problem (septel).

HARTLEY