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nationals who smuggled Malawians to South Africa and subjected them to forced labour have been handed 20-year prison terms each.
The four men and three women were found guilty of human trafficking and kidnapping earlier this year by a South African court.
Their sentence comes nearly six years after they were arrested when local authorities raided a factory in Johannesburg and found 91 Malawian nationals, 37 of them children, working in appalling conditions.
The group — Kevin Tsao, Chen Hui, Qin Li, Jiaqing Zhou, Ma Biao, Dai Junying, and Zhang Zhilian — were found guilty on 158 of the 160 counts for which they were charged.
These include helping illegal immigrants remain in South Africa and violating the country's labour laws by failing to register their operations and and keep a record of their earnings among others.
bbc.com/news/articles/
nationals who smuggled Malawians to South Africa and subjected them to forced labour have been handed 20-year prison terms each.
The four men and three women were found guilty of human trafficking and kidnapping earlier this year by a South African court.
Their sentence comes nearly six years after they were arrested when local authorities raided a factory in Johannesburg and found 91 Malawian nationals, 37 of them children, working in appalling conditions.
The group — Kevin Tsao, Chen Hui, Qin Li, Jiaqing Zhou, Ma Biao, Dai Junying, and Zhang Zhilian — were found guilty on 158 of the 160 counts for which they were charged.
These include helping illegal immigrants remain in South Africa and violating the country's labour laws by failing to register their operations and and keep a record of their earnings among others.
bbc.com/news/articles/