[FROM THE ARCHIVES] Beitbridge Border Bribes

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟰 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰. In November last year, a ten-year-old girl was found during a routine traffic roadblock, squashed inside the luggage compartment of a long-distance bus. She had been smuggled from Zimbabwe into South Africa under extreme conditions for several hours. But her case isn’t unusual. In this months-long investigation, Carte Blanche unravels alleged cross-border human trafficking and the shadowy figures known as transporters who are making it all possible. Undocumented foreign nationals are lured to South Africa from numerous African countries – many of them ending up on the streets of Johannesburg North. Thousands of Malawians are lured into the country on the promise of a new life, some smuggled by long-haul bus companies and funeral parlours, only to be forced into sex work and manual labour. In an even more sinister twist, many of the victims are coerced into taking out funeral policies on themselves once they reach South Africa. It’s an unusual demand but a guaranteed income as the transporters cash in on vulnerable undocumented foreign nationals. Find more exclusive content on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟭𝟵 𝗠𝗮𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟵. Ten- and 12-year-olds behind a radio microphone, broadcasting live to children and live-streaming to the world! It’s a world first for the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital and a novel way for young patients and former patients to tell their own stories to peers who are still admitted to the hospital. Carte Blanche meets the award-winning young RX Radio broadcasters who say radio has a therapeutic effect and helps them deal with their chronic conditions and the healthcare they undergo, sometimes for years. Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟵 𝗢𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯. Traded on the black market, it’s highly lucrative. From diesel skimming to tanker hijackings and petrol depot robberies: over the years, Carte Blanche has investigated multiple criminal networks fuelling the illicit trade in what's known as liquid gold. But as old schemes are exposed, criminals evolve. Now fuel spiking – blending diesel with cheaper ingredients, often paraffin – has taken off on an industrial level. It’s a criminal MO affecting every South African and costing the country millions of every day.  After several months investigating these illicit operations, we uncover an elaborate cross-border tax fraud scheme.  Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟰 𝗙𝗲𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟵. The future of human integrated technology is here as local Wits University engineers find a way to use the human brain to not only communicate with the internet (brainternet), but also transmit words through the brain (brain connect). But how safe is this new invention? Carte Blanche explores the ethical dilemmas of human brains hooking up to the internet, in the not too distant future. Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv