Kenya Airways, Ethiopian Airplane Implicated In Sex Trade And Human Trafficking In Burundi

Burundi has been flanked with controversies and conflicts in the past months since and before the disputed re-elections of President Nkurunzinza. As democratic levels hit red signals with the opposition landed wrath, living standards continue to dwindle given the instability with few or no job opportunities to accommodate the swelling job seeking population.

Gulf nations as Saudi Arabia, world’s biggest oil exporters are preying on poor countries seeking cheap human labor that’s why countries as Kenya, Burundi, and Ethiopia amongst other African countries also Latin America are their softest targets.

Despite deplorable working conditions and torturing reported in the Gulf states, workers continue to stream in thanks to the recruiting agencies who have mastered the art. Ethiopia becomes the latest to send mass population to Saudi Arabia with an initial batch of 160,000 released to work in Saudi Arabia.

Nkurunzinza of Burundi said to be sending 120,000 to unspecified Gulf nation highly suspected to be Oman and Saudi Arabia. Kenya, on the other hand, continues to send its citizens to these toxic environments. Uganda has stopped issuing travel permits for its nationals traveling to Saudi Arabia for domestic jobs.

A lobby group in Burundi, led by Pacifique Nininahazwe, Forum for Conscious Awareness, known by its French acronym, Focode, has been monitoring human trafficking trend in Burundi and is raising an alarm on the growing trend. FOCODE say a locally registered company Salah Al-Dhafeeri is brokering the operation of sending hundreds of young women to Saudi Arabia.

The collaboration is done together with government officials who have their cut off every head smuggled out and also with Airlines.

According to FOCODE, the situation is so bad that’s an estimated number of 300 plus women are trafficked weekly to Saudi Arabia alone.

In a report estimated 300 children were smuggled to Saudi Arabia and Oman since April 2016. Most of these women ended up as sex slaves and subjected to pathetic working environments where they serve as domestic workers.

FOCODE is pointing arrows at Kenya Airways and Ethiopian Airlines as the airlines of choice by the traffickers, “12 girls were flown this morning on flight KQ 448 of Kenya Airlines, and they went to Oman.” Noted FOCODE leader, Pacifique. “Nine girls come from boarding the flight 806 of Ethiopian Airlines, they will in Saudi Arabia” he added.

The lobby group goes further to petition the airlines mentioned to take note of passengers booked for traveling to either of Gulf Nations in a bid to help curb the increasing menace of human trafficking. The syndicate they allege extends to government officials, recruiting agencies and airlines officials. Most of the women travel with falsified documents, FOCODE notes.

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