Dear East Africans, there are no jobs in Thailand – it’s a trapdoor into bondage in Myanmar
The Kenyan mission in Bangkok has had to respond to distress calls from citizens caught up in the intricate web of human trafficking in the Golden Triangle of Southeast Asia.
Over the years, as a diplomat, I have met many Kenyans and indeed East Africans who travel to Thailand for work and leisure. Their trips usually end well and contribute to a good people-to-people experience.
Recently, however, a dangerous trend has emerged in which our mission in Bangkok has had to respond to distress calls from Kenyans caught up in the intricate web of human trafficking in the Golden Triangle of Southeast Asia. These Kenyans – and East Africans – usually mean well: They apply for jobs advertised online, pay the requisite fees ostensibly for document processing, visas and air tickets, and hop onto the plane. But the trips end in misery and sometimes tragedy.
