Government moves to secure release of Kenyan woman sentenced to death in Vietnam
Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’Oei confirmed the intervention on Sunday, following pressure from leaders and Kenyans urging the state to act.
The Kenyan government has stepped in to secure the life of Margaret Nduta Macharia, a 37-year-old Kenyan woman sentenced to death in Vietnam for drug trafficking.
Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’Oei confirmed the intervention on Sunday, following pressure from leaders and Kenyans urging the state to act.
“Nduta’s case is complex and difficult, but we are doing everything within our disposal to secure a reprieve for our national,” Sing’Oei said.
“We are formally engaging with Vietnam and will keep the country updated. While we do not have an embassy in Hanoi and Vietnam has no embassy here, we are working together to find some form of initial reprieve to give all parties time to seek a sustainable solution,” he told The Eastleigh Voice.
Had a telephone conversation this afternoon with my counterpart, H.E. Nguyen Minh Hang, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam over the matter of Margaret Nduta. I conveyed to Madam Hang the anxiety of the Kenyan people on the impending execution of our national and…
— Korir Sing'Oei (@SingoeiAKorir) March 16, 2025
Nduta was convicted on March 6 by the People’s Court in Ho Chi Minh City after being found guilty of smuggling over two kilogrammes of cocaine. She was arrested in July 2023 while in transit to Laos. However, her family claims they only learned of her arrest and sentencing through the internet on March 8.
Her mother, Purity Wangari, has pleaded with the government to intervene and have her daughter repatriated to serve her sentence in Kenya.
“It was the first time my daughter was travelling overseas searching for greener pastures. I plead with the authorities to help bring her home, even if it means serving her sentence locally,” Wangari said.
She further alleged that Nduta was unaware of the drugs, as they were found in a luggage she was given.
“She was given the luggage which got her arrested by a Kenyan man to take it to a woman abroad,” she said.
National outrage
The case has sparked national outrage, with various leaders calling for urgent diplomatic intervention. Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka wrote an open letter to President William Ruto, urging him to seek clemency and repatriation for Nduta.
“I appeal for your urgent engagement with the Government of Vietnam to plead for clemency on humanitarian grounds, seeking to have Ms. Macharia’s death sentence commuted to life imprisonment or an alternative penalty,” Onyonka wrote.
The senator further called for diplomatic negotiations to facilitate Nduta’s repatriation so that she could serve her sentence under Kenyan law. He also urged the government to involve the United Nations and international human rights bodies to support Kenya’s plea.
Embakasi East MP Babu Owino also called on President William Ruto to intervene immediately.
“The President has the powers to call the Vietnam President and help Margaret Nduta, who is supposed to be executed tomorrow,” Owino said.
Saboti MP Caleb Amisi decried the struggles young Kenyans face when seeking employment abroad and blamed the government for failing to protect its citizens.
“The story of Margaret Nduta is horrific. It presents the dire situation young people go through in search of jobs overseas. The government’s primary responsibility is to offer security to its citizens wherever they are,” Amisi said.
Activist Kibet Bull also weighed in, blaming agents who allegedly lured Nduta into the situation.
“Margaret Nduta Macharia was taken by agents to Vietnam only to land in the hands of drug traffickers. She was caught and will be hanged tomorrow. Searching for greener pastures earns her a painful death,” Kibet said.
The government’s response comes amid growing calls for Kenya to strengthen diplomatic efforts to protect its citizens facing severe legal consequences abroad.
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