The 2024 Trafficking in Persons Report by the United States (US) Department of State has implicated Malawian law enforcers in human trafficking activities.
The department, which monitors and takes measures to combat human trafficking, indicates that the problem is deep-rooted in Malawi.
The report, which was released this week, has highlighted the arrest and charges of three police officers and one Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services officer for allegedly recruiting Malawian women for exploitation in domestic servitude in Oman.
In the case in question, the suspects were denied bail and investigations remained ongoing.
“Four police officers were arrested for their alleged involvement in trafficking crimes. Observers reported corrupt officials allegedly permitting child forced labour on a farm in Mchinji [District]; the case was reported to the Malawi Human Rights Commission and resulted in nine children returning to their homes.
“However, the government did not open an investigation,” the report reads.
According to the report, the Government of Malawi does not fully meet minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so.
The report has, however, said the Malawi government demonstrated overall increasing efforts compared to the previous reporting period.
The efforts included increasing prosecutions of traffickers and finalising and launching its 2023–2028 National Action Plan (Nap).
“The government collaborated with a foreign government to repatriate Malawians exploited abroad and facilitated campaigns to raise awareness of trafficking in persons,” the report reads
The report highlights significant issues of corruption and official complicity in trafficking, alleging, for instance, that some Malawian officials received payment to recruit and facilitate the transportation of Malawian adults and children to South Africa for forced labour in businesses privately owned by a People’s Republic of China (PRC) national, and that the government did not report any updates.
The report has further said In November 2016, a federal district court in Maryland [US] issued a default judgement against a former Malawian diplomat posted in the United States for approximately $1.1 million in a civil human trafficking case involving a domestic worker who sued her former employer, the former Malawian diplomat, for trafficking.
According to the report, the amount of money made in the judgement remains unpaid, and for the eighth consecutive year, the government did not report taking any action to hold the former diplomat accountable.
According to the report, despite arrests and charges, ongoing investigations suggest a lack of swift justice or resolution.
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