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US celebrity rage to adopt African babies fuels child-trafficking: Mozambican woman charged in Nelspruit, South Africa

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Mozambican woman Elizabeth Gwambe, on trial in Nelspruit, South Africa for trafficking babies: social workers and police investigators claim she can buy a black SA baby for $200 (US) - and can sell it for up to $30,000 (US). Does the US celebrity rage to adopt black African babies fuel child trafficking? --------------------------------- 16 August 2013 - A Mozambican woman in the Nelspruit region, Elizabeth Gwambe, is being accused of trafficking babies - buying them for R2,000 and reselling them for R300,000 -- by a social worker who cannot be identified because of the ongoing investigation, writes Tereasa Ferrari in Nelspruit. Gwambe was charged in the Nelspruit court after her arrest in December 2011. One of the victims told the social worker that Gwambe "had bragged about paying approximately R2 000 per child and selling them for up to R300 000." Her trial will begin on October 21 2013, reports Ferrari - as she had to have her whole case restarted due to her previous defence attorney, Mr MC Mabunda, withdrawing after she blamed him for changing her plea. A new attorney still has to be appointed. She was arrested in December 2011. She was found in a taxi heading to Johannesburg with a baby whom she claimed was hers, confirmed Mpumalanga police spokesman Col Leonard Hlathi. "After the baby didn't want to drink milk from Gwambe, her co-passengers became suspicious. They confronted her and reported the matter to police. Hlathi said it later emerged that she supposedly also stole a four-year-old boy and placed him with her neighbours in Johannesburg. She remains in custody. ------------------------- Mozambican woman Elizabeth Gwambe 42, charged with trafficking scores of babies: trafficking fuelled by celebrity-rage to adopt black babies in Africa? ------------------------------- http://www.looklocal.co.za/looklocal/content/en/lowveld/lowveld-news-general?oid=7706704&sn=Detail&pid=490165&Woman-alleged-to-buy-and-sell-babies-for-profit -------------------------- "Trafficking babies linked to increase in international adoptions of children from Africa" The United Nations' latest report on human-trafficked babies is that during 2004 and 2012, the number of "'international adoptions of children from Africa has increased by nearly 400 per cent. In total, the number of those who were adopted from countries in Africa by parents in others during the eight years was over 41,000. Reported prices paid to adoption agencies in Africa are between US $10 000 to $30 000. Experts report that many of the orphans actually have at least one living parent and were taken by child traffickers or sold by their parents." It has become a fashion-rage amongst US celebrities to adopt 'black orphans' from Africa and this (perceived) new fashion' is also partially driving the growing trafficking trade in black babies. Recently the well-known South African Hollywood celebrity Charlene Theron adopted a black baby in Malawi. Huffington Post journalist Kristen Howerten https://twitter.com/kristenhowerton investigated this apparent 'trend of international multiracial adoptions' and writes: "It also bears noting that there are many African-American celebrities who have adopted black children as well: Shonda Rhimes, Viola Davis, Angela Bassett, and Reverend Run, to name a few." http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kristen-howerton/celebrity-adoption_b_1579737.html

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