Irene Mayaka, a nominated lawmaker, asks when Kenyan citizens will come home from the Myanmar-Thailand border area. She demands answers from the Defense and Foreign Relations group about how many people need help and what dangers they face right now. Mayaka wants clear details about what steps foreign affairs officials have taken with Thai leaders to save these trapped citizens. She believes the government must explain its plans for working with Thailand to fight against human traffickers.
Mayaka demands updates on criminal investigations into fake job agencies that send people abroad. She requests information about programs teaching young Kenyans how to spot these scams and check whether recruitment companies operate legally before accepting overseas positions. Since 2022, hundreds of Kenyans have fallen for tricks by traffickers who promise amazing jobs throughout Thailand. These criminals target desperate job seekers with fake offers for customer service jobs, driving positions, restaurant work, and similar roles.
The victims learn the terrible truth after landing in Bangkok. Traffickers kidnap them and move them to Mae Sot near the border before smuggling them into Myanmar against their will. These Kenyans face horrible conditions inside Myanmar, where captors force them to work, threaten them, and make them participate in illegal activities. Kiptiness Lindsay Kimwole, who serves as Kenya's ambassador to Thailand, reports that 129 rescued Kenyans remain stuck at the Thai border without a way home.
These 129 citizens belong to a larger group of foreigners who traveled to Myanmar believing they would find good-paying jobs. Instead, they met criminal gangs who forced them to commit internet crimes like scamming, stealing identities, tricking romantic partners, and running cryptocurrency schemes. Ambassador Kimwole mentions that Thai authorities created tough rules affecting all foreigners caught at the border crossing. The rules make it difficult for these trapped Kenyans to either enter Thailand legally or return home to Kenya.
Mayaka demands updates on criminal investigations into fake job agencies that send people abroad. She requests information about programs teaching young Kenyans how to spot these scams and check whether recruitment companies operate legally before accepting overseas positions. Since 2022, hundreds of Kenyans have fallen for tricks by traffickers who promise amazing jobs throughout Thailand. These criminals target desperate job seekers with fake offers for customer service jobs, driving positions, restaurant work, and similar roles.
The victims learn the terrible truth after landing in Bangkok. Traffickers kidnap them and move them to Mae Sot near the border before smuggling them into Myanmar against their will. These Kenyans face horrible conditions inside Myanmar, where captors force them to work, threaten them, and make them participate in illegal activities. Kiptiness Lindsay Kimwole, who serves as Kenya's ambassador to Thailand, reports that 129 rescued Kenyans remain stuck at the Thai border without a way home.
These 129 citizens belong to a larger group of foreigners who traveled to Myanmar believing they would find good-paying jobs. Instead, they met criminal gangs who forced them to commit internet crimes like scamming, stealing identities, tricking romantic partners, and running cryptocurrency schemes. Ambassador Kimwole mentions that Thai authorities created tough rules affecting all foreigners caught at the border crossing. The rules make it difficult for these trapped Kenyans to either enter Thailand legally or return home to Kenya.
