Zimbabwean family leave Bangkok airport after three months
The four children and four adults survived with help from staff in terminal
A Zimbabwean family of eight have finally left Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport after being stranded there for three months in an administrative nightmare.
The family - four children aged between two and 11, and four adults - first arrived in Bangkok in May, the BBC reports. In October, they tried to board a flight for Barcelona via Kiev, says The Phuket News, but didn’t have the correct visas.
They were not allowed to leave the airport, however, because they had overstayed their Thai tourist visas, and refused to return to Zimbabwe, saying they feared persecution there.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The family’s situation came to light in December when an airport employee posted a photo of himself giving one of the children a Christmas gift. Their plight has drawn comparisons to 2004 film The Terminal, in which Tom Hanks plays a man stranded in a New York airport.
A Thai immigration bureau spokesperson identified Muvadi Rodrick as the head of the family, and said they had been cared for by Ukraine International Airlines, according to the Bangkok Post.
The spokesman told the BBC that the family left Bangkok for the Philippines on Monday. It was unclear whether the Philippines was their final destination.
Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa has indicated that he would welcome the return of the family of “refugees”, The Washington Post reported in December.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Decrepit train stations across the US are being revitalized
Under the Radar These buildings function as hotels, restaurants and even museums
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Crossword: January 30, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published
-
Sudoku medium: January 30, 2025
The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
By The Week Staff Published
-
The slow fight for same-sex marriage in Asia
Under the Radar Thailand joins Nepal and Taiwan as the only Asian nations to legalise LGBT unions, amid repressive regimes and religious traditions
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Who is the Hat Man? 'Shadow people' and sleep paralysis
In Depth 'Sleep demons' have plagued our dreams throughout the centuries, but the explanation could be medical
By The Week Staff Published
-
Same-sex marriage becomes legal in Thailand
Speed Read The law grants same-sex spouses the same rights as married heterosexual couples
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Why Assad fell so fast
The Explainer The newly liberated Syria is in an incredibly precarious position, but it's too soon to succumb to defeatist gloom
By The Week UK Published
-
Romania's election rerun
The Explainer Shock result of presidential election has been annulled following allegations of Russian interference
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Russia's shadow war in Europe
Talking Point Steering clear of open conflict, Moscow is slowly ratcheting up the pressure on Nato rivals to see what it can get away with.
By The Week UK Published
-
Cutting cables: the war being waged under the sea
In the Spotlight Two undersea cables were cut in the Baltic sea, sparking concern for the global network
By The Week UK Published
-
The nuclear threat: is Vladimir Putin bluffing?
Talking Point Kremlin's newest ballistic missile has some worried for Nato nations
By The Week UK Published