Investigations by this writer established that the passport racket is operated on two fronts. The most complex which is very difficult to trace enjoys the blessing of corrupt government officials in Harare's Ministry of Home Affairs where not only a new passport is issued but also an original birth certificate and an identification card. The other method of acquiring a Zimbabwe passport is quite risky. It is a miracle of creation by con artists. This involves sourcing a valid old model of the Zimbabwe passport with details resembling that of the migrant in question.
Reliable sources say that the con artists remove the original photo by using steam of boiling water.
After that they insert the photo of the new owner and the plastic is then laminated back using stone glue, which is colourless. Word has it that the forgery is effected from stolen passports or those sold by stranded Zimbabweans. Charges of the doctored passports range from P200 to P300 depending on the validity of the document. However, the con-man's world is coming to an end with the introduction of the vastly improved passport that has a colour photo among many security features. It is alleged that after selling passports, the Zimbabweans rush to their High Commission in Gaborone for temporary travel documents.