By Sylvia
The Rwenzori police are holding five suspected human traffickers on allegations of being behind trafficking of three students from Bulambuli and Mbale districts.
The arrested
According to the Rwenzori west police spokesperson Vincent Twesige, the five whose identity has not been found ,were arrested after the Rwenzori west police Fort Portal CPS received complaints from three students of Bulambuli, claiming that they were trafficked and conned.
The Scenario
According to Twesigye, it is alleged that in December 2022 victims namely Nandudu Sophie, Muyama Phiona, Mutuwa Doreen and Napokoli Edwi Isiah received calls from Godfrey Namisi and Esther Namakoye inviting and convincing them to come to Fort Portal city for Jobs.
They were told of a company called Empowered Consumerism operating under Dream Visionaries in Africa.
The Victims came but did not get the promised jobs, instead they were asked to pay 1.600000/– shillings each for membership and we’re asked to convince more victims. It is on Tuesday that they realized that they have been conned, and resorted to file a case at Police.
The Victims according to filed case
Muyama Phionah 29 years old, student , Mugisu by Tribe, Resident of Buyera village, Bunamaliro Parish, Buhanu Sub-county. Bulambuli District, Napokoli Edwin Isiah, 20 years old, Student, Mugisu by tribe , resident of Buhatelema Village, Bushende Parish, Bukhalu Sub-county. Bulambuli District and Mutuwa Doreen 24 years old, Nursing Student, Mugisu by tribe, resident of Shikundu Village, Bungwanyi parish, Bukiyende Sub-county. Mbale District.
Meanwhile, police have asked a person who knows the relatives of the victims to call on 0788332797.
Human Trafficking Previously in Uganda
Curent statistics by the US department of state Uganda, The government reported initiating prosecutions against 537 alleged traffickers in 403 cases in 2021, a significant increase compared with prosecuting 283 individuals in 202 cases in 2020.
Of the 403 cases filed, at least 256 involved sex trafficking, 103 involved forced labor, and 44 involved unknown exploitation; 357 involved exploitation in Uganda and 46 involved exploitation abroad. The government withdrew 11 cases due to lack of evidence, while 361 cases remained ongoing at the end of the reporting period. Courts convicted 30 traffickers under the 2009 anti-trafficking act—the most convictions ever reported in a single year—compared with 11 convictions in 2020. Of the 30 convictions, courts convicted 14 traffickers for sex trafficking and 16 for forced labor.
Courts sentenced the majority of traffickers to significant prison terms, including the first reported life sentence for a trafficker convicted of child sex trafficking; the average sentence was approximately 10 years’ imprisonment. Courts acquitted one trafficker for unspecified reasons.
In response to the pandemic, courts nationwide closed or significantly scaled down operations from June 2021 to November 2021. During this time, some courts in urban areas utilized virtual options; however, the court closures exacerbated previous case backlogs.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) Department of Gender, Children, and Sexual Offenses held special court sessions to alleviate the case backlog related to sexual and gender-based violence, including potential trafficking crimes; ODPP did not systematically track trafficking cases tried during these special sessions
