Kenyan officials arrive in Vietnam ahead of Nduta's execution appeal
Macharia Margaret Nduta, 37, has been sentenced to death in Vietnam.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has confirmed that a consular team has finally accessed Margaret Nduta, a Kenyan imprisoned in Vietnam on drug-related charges and on death row, following weeks of diplomatic efforts.
This is according to Principal Secretary Korir Sing’Oei, who also confirmed that she's still alive.
In a statement issued Thursday, Dr Sing’oei said the team, which had been based in Bangkok, successfully obtained travel visas and visited Margaret Nduta, who is currently being held at Hoi Chi Minh Prison.
"We can confirm that while deeply distressed, Margaret is coping and has been treated humanely," he said in a social media update posted Friday evening.
A 'difficult matter'
The case has drawn growing concern in Kenya and abroad, particularly due to the circumstances surrounding Nduta’s trial and imprisonment.
Kenyan authorities have been actively engaging their Vietnamese counterparts to explore possible alternatives for resolving what Dr Sing’oei described as a "difficult matter."
Nduta’s case adds to a string of similar incidents in which Kenyan nationals have been detained or convicted abroad in connection with drug trafficking, often under difficult legal and diplomatic circumstances.
The Ministry has pledged continued consular support for Nduta as her appeal moves forward.
According to court documents, Nduta was arrested in July 2023 while on transit to Laos.
Hired by unknown man
After her arrest, she claimed she was hired by a man only known as John and that she was to deliver the suitcase she was carrying to another woman. She was also to bring back some other "goods" from the woman.
Nduta was paid $1,300 (Sh167,000) by John who also footed the bill for air tickets, according to the indictment.
She told the court that she managed to avoid detection at three airports including JKIA in Nairobi.
The 37-year-old also successfully smuggled the drugs through security checks at both Bole International Airport in Ethiopia and Hamad International Airport in Qatar, before being caught in Ho Chi Minh.
Major trafficking hub
Vietnam is known as a major hub for drug trafficking in the Golden Triangle, a region where China, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar meet.
The region is the second-largest drug-producing area in the world. The country's 2,300km border with neighbouring states makes it a convenient route for gangs to smuggle drugs.
Smugglers find Ho Chi Minh City an attractive transit point because of its proximity to Cambodia.
However, Vietnam has the world's toughest drug laws, and anyone found guilty of possessing or smuggling more than 600 grammes of heroin or cocaine or more than 2.5 kilogrammes of methamphetamine faces the death penalty.