Tanzanian rights groups hail new anti-human trafficking law

Tanzania globally known as source country of domestic and transnational trafficking of girls and boys, many of whom end up as sex slaves or forced labor

By Kizito Makoye

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania (AA) – Human rights groups in Tanzania are delighted by a new law that gives authorities sweeping powers to fight human trafficking.

Onesmo Olengurumwa, a coordinator of the Tanzania Human Rights Defenders Coalition, an umbrella organization of various human rights defenders' groups, told Anadolu Agency that the new law has bolstered the government's anti-human trafficking campaign.

“Human trafficking is a serious violation of human rights, and it must be fought from every angle. This new law further strengthens the government's resolve to address this issue,” he said.

Though the new law will deter criminals, Olengurumwa urged the government to also find ways to compensate victims of human trafficking.

“The victims are often women and children who are exploited. They deserve compensation,” he stressed.

Tanzania's parliament on Thursday passed the Written Laws (Miscellaneous Amendments No 2) Bill 2022 in Dodoma, which imposes severe punishment of life imprisonment or a fine of 200 million Tanzanian shillings (approximately $86,000) to those convicted.

The new law increases the severity of the penalty for traffickers.

Attorney General Eliezer Feleshi, who tabled the new law, stated that it is intended to address shortfalls in 2008 Anti-trafficking in Person legislation, which was more lenient.

The new legislation provides Tanzanian authorities with new tools to fight the vice effectively.

In 2015, Tanzania scrapped hundreds of job recruitment agencies after allegations that girls sent as domestic servants to Middle Eastern countries were used as sex slaves.

The east African country is known globally as a source country for domestic and transnational trafficking of girls and boys, many of whom end up as sex slaves or forced labor.

Harold Deusdedit, a Dar es Salaam-based human rights lawyer, said law enforcers need additional tools to fight human trafficking in a more technology-savvy world.

“The internet and digital platforms offer traffickers tools to recruit, exploit, and conceal criminal records with greater speed and anonymity,” he explained.

According to him, law enforcement authorities must be equipped with additional tools to protect digital space from criminal abuse.

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