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22 September 2006: Organised Crime in Zimbabwe on the Rise
Zimbabwe Observer
Organised crime in Zimbabwe is on the rampage and turning out to be a problem that is affecting neighbouring countries. Various forms of organised crime are being committed including the running of prostitution rings, the production of fraudulent identity documents, corruption, aggravated robbery, motor vehicle and truck hijacking, extortion and smuggling activities. Those involved include career criminals, ordinary Zimbabweans, foreign nationals, police officers, former soldiers, and customs officers. The deteriorating crime situation has been attributed to poverty and high levels of unemployment. The question being asked is: with the tentacles of organised crime extending to high echelons of public office, including the police, who will police the police?
Commentary
It is the smuggling of everyday commodities, such as maize and sugar, which are affecting Zimbabwe’s neighbours (1). These are the commodities that are most often in short supply in the country, and which have a huge market in Mozambique. Both well-coordinated syndicates that smuggle these goods by the truckloads, as well as individuals, are involved in transporting these illegally exported commodities through Mutare (on the Zimbabwean side of the border) and Mangwe (on the Mozambican side of the border). According to reports, these cities house depots of maize and sugar (2). It is suspected that even food aid that is supposed to address the food shortage in Zimbabwe is diverted to neighbouring countries where it is sold (3).
Another commodity that continues to be smuggled out of Zimbabwe, mainly to South Africa, is cigarettes. Recently the police arrested four Zimbabweans for allegedly smuggling 1950 boxes of cigarettes of the brand Remington Gold, (4) and in August authorities exposed two container loads of cigarettes that were packed for smuggling through the Durban harbour. The consignment was worth R2.4 million (US$325,452). The recent arrests come on the back of similar busts at the end of 2005 when the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority intercepted fuel tankers at the Beitbridge and Plumtree border posts carrying concealed boxes of Remington Gold cigarettes.
The extent and continuation of the smuggling industry raises the likelihood that these networks are also involved in the production of fake waybills and other documentation relating to the transportation of merchandise across borders. There are also suggestions of collusion with border and customs officials. Several immigration officers from both South Africa and Zimbabwe were arrested for smuggling cigarettes in the first quarter of 2006. In the case of maize smuggling, some of the smugglers have admitted to paying bribes to the authorities (5).
In the same period under review Zimbabwean citizens have been linked to violent crimes in South Africa. The Herald recently reported the death of a notorious Zimbabwean national, Shame Chirambamhanda-Mlambo, who was shot dead by police following an attempt to hijack a top-of-the-range motor vehicle in Johannesburg. It is noteworthy that he was able to cross the border to and from South Africa undetected several times in spite of being on ‘the most wanted’ list in Zimbabwe and South Africa for armed robbery and motor vehicle hijacking (6). This is not an isolated case - there are several other reports of organised criminal activities such as the two Zimbabweans who were arrested in connection with the robbery of millions in foreign currency from a cargo airplane at the Johannesburg International Airport on March 25 this year. They were arrested while attempting to cross the border back into Zimbabwe with US$200,000 in their possession (7). It has also been revealed that approximately 827 Zimbabweans have been convicted already and an additional 499 are awaiting sentencing in South African prisons facing convictions for various crimes (8).
Other serious organised criminal activities perpetrated in Zimbabwe include the falsification of identity documents in which notorious West African criminal syndicates have established links with corrupt officials in the passport office to supply them with passports. The passports facilitate criminal activities as well making possible international travel. Extortion rackets are also reported to be on the increase, with reported cases of business people who have been enticed into sexual service transactions and thereafter compelled to pay extortion ‘fees’ in order to avoid the risk of public exposure.
Zimbabwe’s dire economic situation is a major factor in the rise of organised crime in the country and its spread to neighbouring countries. Massive corruption in public office further frustrates efforts to clamp down on criminal activities; and combating corruption is itself a major challenge as it has becomes a way of life for public officials whose meagre salaries fail to provide them the quality of life they desire. In a country with inflation levels of some 1,200%, restoring normality is now an enduring challenge. Without fundamental reform, crime threatens to become a way of life for many more people fighting to secure and sustain basic livelihoods.
Mpho Mashaba, Organised Crime and Money Laundering Programme, ISS Cape Town
1. See, Smugglers cost Zimbabwe billions, The Herald, 11 December 2005 http://www.queensu.ca/samp/migrationnews/article.php?Mig_News_ID=2215&Mig_News_Issue=12&Mig_News_Cat=11
4. Beitbridge Bureau, “4 suspected Zim smugglers arrested in South Africa,” The Herald, 20 September 2006. See, http://www.herald.co.zw/inside.aspx?sectid=9119&cat=1
5. Ibid. , The Herald, 11 December 2005
6. Suspected Zimbabwean robber shot dead in SA, The Herald, 18 September, 2006. http://www.herald.co.zw/inside.aspx?sectid=9054&cat=1
7. Michael Schmidt “Confusion reigns about heist details” Cape Argus, April 01, 2006. http://iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=vn20060401105621982C378512
8. Eleanor Momberg, Lack of data muddies crime role of aliens, Sunday Independent, July 16, 2006 http://iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=vn20060716083056892C560922
