Kokstad, 16 April, 2025 / 4:07 pm (ACI Africa).
The Chairperson of the Social Action Department at the South African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) has called for increased awareness on human trafficking and gender-based violence among other social injustices that are said to be on the rise in South Africa.
Asked to weigh in on what was described as a “scourge” of human trafficking in South Africa in an interview published on April 12, Bishop Thulani Victor Mbuyisa of the country’s Catholic Diocese of Kokstad said, “Unfortunately, there is not much awareness… more still needs to be done.”
Bishop Victor said that the entity of the SACBC Social Action Department, which includes the one in charge of migrants and refugees, is already doing a lot in terms of creating awareness.
Referring to a reported case of kidnapping involving a South African woman and her daughter, Bishop Victor highlighted the challenges of addressing human trafficking. He said, “At times, the people who commit this crime are those closest to the victims.”
Calling for “a conversion of hearts”, the SACBC official said, “How on earth, can you treat a human being as though they were a commodity, something to be bought and sold? There’s something really wrong not just with our thinking, but we have lost this spirit of Ubuntu. We really need to pray for conversion of hearts.”
