Tears at Christmas

The Golden Girls of Mali

The next time you buy something golden - take a moment to consider its history.

The gold might just have come from Mali, Africa's third largest exporter of gold.

A country deeply involved in a massive Human Trafficking scandal.

The Gold Mines

Mali has been known for its gold since the 12th century and has brought great riches to the large international mining companies who have purchased the right to extract the ore.

But, as in many gold producing countries, the wealth is not reaching the grass roots.

According to Human Rights NGO, FIDH,

"The contribution of the mining sector to Malian development has been negligible, when not negative. Mali remains poor, very poor, nearly the poorest of countries: it ranks 175th among 177 countries in terms of human development."

But there is one business which flourishes when a mine opens for business - Sex Slavery.

Morila Mine

According to a report by the BBC, when the Morila gold mine opened in 2001, six brothel/cafe's opened almost immediately in the nearest town Sanso.

They weren't local women working there.

The customers were served by sex slaves from Nigeria who had been tricked into working as prostitutes.

"Young women are fooled into believing that they are on their way to Spain or somewhere else and during the trip, they are asked to settle near the gold mines to trade their bodies" said Mohammed Maiga, who is in charge of HIV/STD prevention among the prostitutes.

The Police

According to sources from Morila mines, Sanso police officers use the prostitutes as their accomplices to extort money from people.

"Sometimes the prostitutes would befriend people and then later denounce them for sexual harassment or abuse ... before asking for money in exchange for the officer’s silence".

Yemisi's story

"I feel like committing suicide when I remember," says Yemisi Ogoda about her journey which ended in Mali.

She was handed to a gang who demanded she repay debts for her travel.

After being beaten and locked up without food for two days, the young Nigerian agreed to work as a prostitute to try to pay the debt.

"They said they would kill me if I did not do it. Nobody will know about it, they will just kill me there, no-one will know," she adds.

She fell pregnant, and was coerced into an abortion. The attempt failed, and, visibly pregnant, she was sold on to another gang, only managing to flee when she was left unsupervised to bathe.

Ms Ogoda survived by begging in the streets until she managed to contact her family.

Trolley Boys

The network of migration routes that criss-cross West Africa are known to police as a "hot graveyard for migrants", because the number who die on the way is so great.

So-called "trolley-boys" - the trafficking middle-men - run "the relay race", passing their human cargo onwards, with promises of jobs in hairdressing and supermarkets.

The true nature of the "job" is revealed later.

Investigation

After receiving reports of sexual slavery from aid workers and clergy, Nigerian officials went to Mali to investigate earlier this year.

They said were "nauseated" by what they had seen: Brothels with cubicles in which young Nigerian women, many in their mid-teens, serviced as many as 20 or 30 clients a night, in order to pay off debts incurred to the "trolley-men".

"It is clear it is not consensual," says Arinze Orakwue of Nigeria's National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic in Persons (Naptip). "They have no freedom of movement. They are not allowed to go outside with you, or even to make a phone call."

Naptip's hard-hitting findings, published on 29 September, also warned of what officials described as "slave camps" in Mali's north - brothels in the gold-mining towns of Kayes and Mopti.

Operation Timbuktu

The findings were given to Malian police and Operation Timbuktu was launched.

"Operation Timbuktu will be executed with the Malian authorities, to free the girls and ensure their safe return to Nigeria," Simon Chuzi Egede, executive secretary of Naptip, said at the time.

Months later, nothing has happened, and the trafficked teenagers and women remain in the hands of criminal gangs in Mali.

Failure

"All of us have failed," says Mr Orakwue, an assistant director of intelligence and communications at Naptip.

"The first thing that is preventing their return is support from the Malian authorities," he says.

"What we want Mali to do is say: 'Nigeria, come! We will support you to strike, to engage in law enforcement action, to get the girls back.'"

Brothel in Bamak

Naptip officials say that despite assurances of cooperation from Mali, attempts at communication with the Mali police are being ignored.

It is clear that Operation Timbuktu is beset by difficulties:

A lack of French-speakers in Nigeria's police able to communicate with Malian officials, slow bureaucracies, and little political interest in the fate of the victims.

Officials say to make headway, they need wholehearted support from Mali.

"There is a perception that it is a Nigerian problem," says one officer. "These are Nigerian women, controlled by Nigerian gangs. So they see it as a foreign racket. But the customers are in Mali."

"Definitely, I want to see diplomatic pressure on Mali," insists Mr Orakwue. "It is an emergency.

Logistics

Naptip estimate the number of women trapped in Mali to be anywhere between 20,000 and 40,000. Other estimates - from local charities - suggest a lower figure, in the thousands.

Whatever the number, the idea of raiding brothels and mounting a large-scale repatriation of thousands of people across five West African countries poses serious logistical and financial difficulties for Naptip.

To get started, the agency will need wider support. Officers are impatient to begin work.

"We've got visuals, where these girls are located," says Mr Orakwue.

"And we're here, not doing anything about it," he says. "We're just sitting here, talking."

Profits

The Morila mine, like many others in Mali, is part owned by the Government.

In its quarterly report up to 30 September 2010, Randgold - the majority owner - reported profits of $11,099,000 on the Morila mine operation.

They also:

"Budget a percentage of profit for sustainable community development projects. The projects are selected and prioritised in consultation with communities and carried out in cooperation with community members."

Price of Gold

The price of gold currently stands at approximately $1300 an ounce

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Editors Note:

Over the last 5 years Nigeria has been working hard to tackle issues relating to Human Trafficking. In 2009, its efforts were finally rewarded when it was placed on the Tier 1 list in the US governments Annual Global Trafficking Report.

Mali meanwhile is on the Tier 2 Watch List

"During the reporting period, the Mali government made two arrests for human trafficking offenses: in both cases, the suspected traffickers were released without trial.

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SOURCES

FIDH: Gold Mining and Human Rights in Mali

BBC: Nigerian sex slave rescue from Mali 'fails'

AFRIC NEWS: Mali’s prostitution gold mines a transit point to Europe?

RANDGOLD RESOURCES: Quarterly Financial Report

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