Kenyan national Margaret Nduta Macharia, who was set to be executed in Vietnam for drug trafficking, has received a temporary reprieve following diplomatic intervention from Kenya’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Nduta, who was sentenced to death after being found guilty of smuggling drugs into Vietnam, was scheduled for execution on the evening of Monday, March 17, 2025. However, her execution was postponed after Kenya’s government intensified diplomatic efforts to appeal for clemency or a delay in her sentence.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through Kenya’s embassy in Thailand, dispatched a delegation to Hanoi to negotiate on her behalf. Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’Oei has been in direct communication with Vietnam’s Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Nguyen Minh Hang, expressing Kenya’s deep concern over Nduta’s fate.
Nduta’s family, human rights activists, and legal experts have been advocating for mercy, citing her claims that she was tricked into carrying the contraband. Her mother, in an emotional plea, tearfully asked the government to save her daughter, explaining that Nduta left Kenya for the first time in 2023 in search of greener pastures. According to her, Nduta was deceived into carrying a suitcase that contained the drugs without her knowledge.
“When she arrived in Ethiopia, a man named Njoroge gave her a suitcase. He mentioned that hers was old. She was asked to give it to another woman upon arrival. She did not know that it had drugs,” her mother said, with tears flowing down her face.
Kenya has urged Vietnam to consider alternative sentencing options and allow further legal representations on her behalf. While her execution has been postponed, her future remains uncertain as negotiations continue. The Kenyan government has assured the public that it will exhaust all possible diplomatic and legal avenues to secure a more lenient outcome for Nduta.
This case has sparked debate on the dangers of international drug trafficking, the role of unsuspecting couriers, and the stringent drug laws in Southeast Asia, where trafficking often carries the death penalty. The world is now watching as Kenya and Vietnam navigate this sensitive matter.
