Social media and human trafficking alerts causes fear in our communities
South African National Human Trafficking Resource Line is 0800 222 777.
Over the past few months, human trafficking topics have sparked much debate over social media as people have been sharing videos of women and children getting kidnapped by traffickers.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) have released a statement on September 7 indicating concerns of the recent spike in videos on social media platforms.
The report stated that since these posts have been going viral, the police have been trying to confirm if those depictions did or did not occur in parts of the country.
The police, unfortunately, had no luck in finding evidence to confirm that it happened here in South Africa. The police statement itself states that the only reasonable conclusion they can draw is that these videos are that they are part of a hoax.
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The statement from SAPS appealed to social media users to act responsibly and verify information before posting sharing, as such postings do nothing more than cause unnecessary panic and paranoia among our communities.
“Social media, when utilized responsibly, is an important communication platform that assists the police in combatting crime and arresting criminals.”
“The South African Police Service assures the community that continuous awareness and educational talks on the safety of our children are done at various institutions including schools.”
“While the recent social media postings remain unconfirmed, it is a reality that children do go missing. Therefore, parents and guardians are urged to exercise vigilance at all times.”
When it comes to human trafficking issues the 0800222777.org.za which is the human trafficking resource line states that our country is a source, transit, and destination country for victims of trafficking.
They also state that our country has become a prime destination for international trafficking syndicates to operate in. According to the site, the current statistics show that only 1% of all victims are rescued.
There are a few main approaches traffickers use to lure victims and these are the fake job offers, mainly for jobs abroad, so-called love relationships over social media, the trafficker courts the victim and pretends to be falling in love with her.
Once he earns the victim’s trust, he sells her to be sexually exploited. The organisation warns that the internet, especially social networking sites, is the most used tool by traffickers for research and selection of potential victims.
When it comes to the viral videos, an urgent appeal is made by SAPS to the public, in instances where you suspect a crime may have been committed or anything suspicious has occurred to contact the police first to verify such information.
In cases where children are involved, the Family Violence Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit (FCS) may be contacted as well as the sector manager of a particular area.
Discuss your concerns and let the police together with you make the informed decisions before posting on social media.
Residents can contact the police Crime Stop number 08600 10111 and all information received will be treated with the strictest confidentiality.
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