The National Observatory for the Fight Against Transnational Crime (ONLCT) has sounded the alarm over what it calls a growing wave of technology-driven human trafficking in Burundi, warning that criminal networks are increasingly exploiting digital platforms to target vulnerable citizens.
In a statement issued Tuesday to mark the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, ONLCT said that despite decades of international progress, “forms of exploitation persist even today in the form of modern slavery,” continuing to rob millions of their basic rights. The group cited the 1949 U.N. Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons, noting that legislative advances have not eradicated evolving forms of trafficking.
ONLCT said traffickers are leveraging gaps in digital literacy to manipulate victims. “Criminal networks are taking advantage of the ignorance and lack of digital skills to recruit, deceive, transport and exploit Burundians,” the statement read. Women, young people and minors are the most frequently targeted, often ending up in sexual or economic exploitation abroad.
As evidence of the growing danger, the organization pointed to the Nov. 24 arrest of 14 undocumented Burundian migrants in Mwanza, Tanzania. The group was intercepted aboard two public buses traveling toward Kenya after crossing through Kabanga, Ngara and Sengerema. “These Burundians were headed to unknown destinations, unaware of the exploitation awaiting them,” ONLCT said.
Calling the trend “deeply worrying,” ONLCT urged the Burundian government to take swift action. It called for a revision of the country’s anti-trafficking law enacted in October 2014, arguing that it is no longer suited to the digital era. “This law is no longer adapted to today’s rapid expansion of digital technologies, which are plunging many Burundians into modern slavery,” the organization said.
The watchdog also requested the creation of a special anti-trafficking court and an accompanying investigative brigade to dismantle online and offline trafficking networks. “These structures are necessary to put traffickers out of harm’s way, especially those operating secretly online,” the statement read.
The statement by the ONLCT comes while the world marks the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, commemorated annually on December 2nd.
