5 Malawians sold as slaves in Tanzania
Several decades after the abolishment of slave trade, a Tanzanian man sold five Malawian boys to work on a farm in Tanzania.
Chitipa Police spokesperson Solemn Chunga on Monday said the five, Donald Muyira, Petulo Kainga, Orandi Kasengo, Benson Kasenga and Blessings Ndimbwa from Ibuzya and Ipenza villages in the district, fell into the trap of better life, which Tanzanian Thomas Ndimbwa, 30, of Izuba Village in Ileje District, Tanzania promised them if they agreed to go to Tanzania in February to work at a lodge.
However, the boys were sold at K20 000 ($52) each and they worked on a farm, cultivating crops up to July without being paid until one of them escaped and reported the matter to their parents.
“He took the five boys to Dar es Salaam in Tanzania and handed them over to another man who gave him K100 000 ($268). They worked under tough conditions, cultivating crops without payment and being given food once in a month,” said Chunga.
He said parents complained to Ipenza police who arrested the Tanzanian at Kameme Trading Centre in Chitipa.
“We talked to Tanzanian police who managed to trace the boys and sent them back to Malawi. Malawian police have handed over the suspect to Tanzanian police for prosecution,” said Chunga.
