Zambia’s High Commissioner to South Africa, Leslie Mbula has warned Zambian parents to keep a close watch on their daughters so that they are not lured into South Africa where they may be forced to work as sex slaves.
Meanwhile, Mr. Mbula has appealed to the Zambian Association in South Africa (ZASA) to help in registering Zambians living in South Africa so that the mission has a proper record of the Zambian community in South Africa.
According to a statement released in Lusaka today by Second Secretary for Press at the Zambian Chancery, Mr. Mbula was speaking when a four-man delegation of ZASA officials led by its chairman Daniel Mundea called on him at the Chancery today.
Mr. Mbula said the mission did not have a proper record of the Zambian community living in South Africa because many of them were not registered.
He expressed concern at the increasing number of young Zambian girls who were getting stranded in South Africa because they have no passports and no means of sustaining themselves.
Mr. Mbula said girls as young as 15 years old were being smuggled into South Africa by truck-drivers supposedly for the purpose of finding them jobs but in reality the younger girls are forced to work as sex slaves.
He disclosed that a few luck ones had managed to escape from their “bosses” and reported themselves at the mission.
Mr. Mbula said the girls forced into the sex trade are at risk of contracting the dreaded HIV/AIDS disease adding that such girls also run the risk of getting killed.
He said parents could put a stop to such unnecessary risks if they kept track of their daughters’ whereabouts.
The Zambian envoy said police and other relevant authorities should be alerted whenever teenage daughters disappear from home.
ENDS/PM/AM/ZANIS
“the zambian envoy said police and other relevant authorities should be alerted whenever teenage daughters are missing from home” end quote. has anybody tried to report a missing young lady to the zambian police? its the most frustrating and humiliating thing you could ever do. first off all the police men on duty will have a laugh at your expense. the moment you tell them the age of the victim, they go into hysteric laughs passing snide remarks like “ah alelefye outti uyo. aka bwela ngabamunasha.” anyway its a good call but our police force should learn to take things seriously when it comes to young girls/ladies.
What has the Zambian daughters done now….
And how did these daughters manage to acquire passports to travel to SA??
A Zambian mission that wants to register Zambians in South Africa? That is a first! Well done your Excellency! That is what missions should be doing. Most of them do not care what their compatriots are up to and beside they feel that Zambians are an inconvenience! The Zambian HC website in London has no information about Passport renewal for Zambians in UK, but a whole lot of sell for visiting London. No Zambian current affairs. Link to tourism is ok. I do not understand the reason for a link to parliament and BOZ. Perhaps LuSE, ZRA and some relevant ministry links would have been better.
But the mission should use its resources to register these people not some non-government organisations’ efforts and finances ala!
If we fix problems affecting youth in Zambia then our young girls wont have to run away. This is an issue that has to be tackled from the roots. A tree wont thrive if the roots are dead.
Was that meant to be an official statement? Obviously the SA authorities may not be amused if they hear it, especially if the ambassador does not have statistics to back it.
Good job Mr Ambassador for bringing this to light. It is well known and dis-heartening what activities some Zambian girls part-take in when they come to South Africa.Their poor parents in Zambia think their girls have gone “kubulaya” when in actual fact they have become common whores parading the dangerous streets of Hilbrow,Yeoville, Randburg etc
This is timely advice and I hope GRZ through Minister Shikapwasha will release this data effectively to all Zambians at home and abroad.
On “He expressed concern at the increasing number of young Zambian girls who were getting stranded in South Africa because they have no passports and no means of sustaining themselves”, do Zambians need passports to travel to South Africa and other SADC countries? Why this concenr then?
Following “Mr. Mbula said girls as young as 15 years old were being smuggled into South Africa by truck-drivers supposedly for the purpose of finding them jobs but in reality the younger girls are forced to work as sex slaves“, what do you expect when you have no sports facilities and jobs for Zambian people? About 80% Zambians have no jobs (LT)!
9 continued.
I also hear that the same occurrence outlined here also apply to Zambians going to Australia? Equally Europe and the USA I believe. In light of these things, I urge our GRZ to come up with programmes that will limited or curb such troubles that our Zambian girls are facing out there. The answer in such issues lies in giving people something to do even in a little way. Someone said, “an idle mind is the devil’s workshp” and hence the effects we are seeing now.
This is the work of NGOs and not a mission abroad!! So if the girls call on the Mission in SA, do they get free passports to stay or travel back home? The procedure is missing here.
The police can not handle all matters of society and besides they are also corrupt. I call on all NGOs to embrace this duty of taking care of the lost and stranded.
#9# Yes all zambians visiting south Africa need a valid passport for entry but does not require to apply for a visa whilst in their country, but has the visa entry at boarder points. That applies to all other SADC nations which a zambian needs to visit. countries like Kenya, Tanzania and Zimbabwe need a visa before travelling if am not mistaken.(apply before you get to the boarders of South africa.) So its really strange that such young girls find themselves in such situations. Which means they have no identity what so ever, ie, no NRC, no passport no drivers licence because they are under age. Its shameful.
12 Nebo greetings and thanks. How about the TRAVEL DOCUMENTS which work in lieu of passports? Are they note enough for travel to SA?
“… Mr. Mbula has appealed to the Zambian Association in South Africa (ZASA) to help in registering Zambians living in South Africa so that the mission has a proper record of the Zambian community in South Africa.”
A welcome and timely thought Mr Mbula, though it is long overdue and coming in time of ‘Girls in Crisis’. Share this practical thought with RB and other Missions. As long as our Govt does not know the wherebaouts of its citizens, we are as good as dead to our beloved ZAMBEZILAND.
The grass is always greener beyond the fence only to find it is a cesspit. People always say that poverty is the cause of prostitution. That is not entirely true. There are millions of women and girls who are poor who would never sell their bodies for a dime. In the west there are prostitutes with University dgrees as long as your arm. Some are even married. We live in a world now where absolutes have been thrown out through the window. What is wrong to one person may not be a problem to another. We must go back to the foundations for when the foundations are destroyed what can the people do? Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people. South Africa boasts to have the most liberal constitution in the world and they will soon reap a whirlwind!
#2 if people are being smuggled they do not necessarily need passports to travel as they can be hidden within the cargo or wherever and they could get through unnoticed just like some people smuggling drugs are caught and other’s aren’t. I believe most of these girls are taken thinking they are going to school or to live a “better life” we don’t know the facts so lets not just assume
Quite frankly, I don’t think the mission in Pretoria has the capacity to maintain a proper register of Zambians living in SA. Unfortunately, Information Technology is painfully lacking, e.g. all applications for passport renewals are recorded by hand in a giant, ancient looking ledger book – it takes forever for the smiling, friendly receptionist to find your application details and then inform you to check next week. So for now, I think the Mission should focus on getting some computer systems in place and capacitating the staff there adequately.
#2 the daughters are being suspected of practicing whichcraft.
true, YOU ARE RIGHT ON THE SPOT , # 6