A campaign against human trafficking in Eswatini a welcome move

On Wednesday 28 September 2022, the Roman Catholic Church in collaboration with the Prime Minister’s Office – Anti Trafficking in Persons Department and other stakeholders held a Campaign against Trafficking in Persons at the Manzini Bus Rank. The intent was to sensitize public transport operators as well as the general public against trafficking in persons. This was done in line with the  July 30, 2022 World Day Against Trafficking in Persons commemorated under the theme: Use and Abuse of technology. Social media was cited as the main vehicle used by traffickers to recruit, exploit and control their victims. They use social media to advertise, organize transportation and accommodation with other traffickers. It was emphasized that in as much as technology is used by these traffickers, it can also be used to  eradicate human trafficking by investing in trafficking networks and provide digital evidence to support and provide aid to trafficking survivors. The event was supported by the Municipality Council of Manzini, the Swaziland Local Transport Association (SLTA), The Royal Eswatini Police Services (REPS), Council of Swaziland Churches (CSC). In his remarks, the writer applauded the effort by both the Catholic Church and Government for such an event in reaching out to the transport operators and the public and implored the organizers to visit other regions to do the same