Nairobi – Kenya has mounted a last-ditch diplomatic effort to save Margaret Nduta, a 37-year-old woman facing execution in Vietnam for drug trafficking.
With time running out, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has activated diplomatic channels through Kenya’s embassy in Thailand, dispatching a team to Hanoi in a desperate attempt to secure clemency.
Nduta’s fate hangs in the balance and if diplomatic efforts fail, she could soon face lethal injection, marking a tragic end to a case that has gripped the nation.
Arrested in 2023 at Ho Chi Minh City Airport, Nduta was found in possession of two kilograms of cocaine. She was tried, convicted, and handed the maximum penalty, death.
The ruling has since sparked a widespread campaign, with both the Kenyan government and human rights activists pleading for leniency.
Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs Korir Sing’Oei told Citizen TV Kenya the government was not giving up on Nduta’s life.
Given that Kenya has no diplomatic presence in Vietnam, officials from the embassy in Thailand have been dispatched to intervene on her behalf.
Sing’Oei stated that the government’s effort should at the very least get Nduta a stay of execution and hopefully clemency in the long run.
Vietnam has some of the world’s strictest drug laws, with trafficking among 22 offences that carry the death penalty.
Back home, Nduta’s family is holding onto hope, clinging to the possibility of a last-minute reprieve.
Her devastated mother made a heartfelt appeal to the authorities, urging the government to secure her release and have her imprisoned in the country.
As the clock ticks down, Kenya awaits Vietnam’s response, hoping that political and diplomatic efforts will be enough to spare Nduta’s life.
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