COMMENTARY
Khaled Hosseini once wrote in A Thousand Splendid Suns: “Like a compass needle that points north, a man’s accusing finger always finds a woman.”
Spoken by the character Nana to Mariam, this line highlights how women are often blamed for circumstances beyond their control even when men are responsible.
Tragically, this notion applies in the recent case of two Ugandan nationals, Monic Karungi and Kayla, reportedly sex workers, who died in Dubai, UAE.
On 15th September, 2025, the BBC released an hour-long documentary uncovering the events that led to their deaths. The documentary has sparked widespread discussion on social media, with many reactions reflecting the persistent problem of victim blaming in the context of sex work.
A significant portion of commentary, particularly from male Ugandan netizens, suggests that Karungi and Kayla were fully responsible for their fate. To understand the full story, I watched the BBC documentary myself.
Karungi first came into the public eye in 2022, when a graphic video showing an African woman engaging in extreme sexual acts went viral.
The video popularized the term “Porta Potty” on social media, referring to women in the UAE who partake in degrading sexual acts with wealthy men to fund lavish lifestyles online.
While many believe the woman in the video was Karungi, this has been disputed. Around the same time, another viral video depicted a woman jumping from a high-rise building, claimed by some to be Karungi, though that video was later traced to Russia.
The BBC documentary reveals a far more disturbing truth. Monic and Kayla did not voluntarily enter prostitution.
Charles Mwesigwa, a notorious human trafficker, lured young Ugandan women with promises of legitimate work in supermarkets and hotels overseas.
He funded their visas and plane tickets to Dubai, only to confine them in overcrowded, squalid apartments alongside dozens of other women. There, they were coerced into prostitution to repay their debts, with clients arranged by Mwesigwa.
Despite clear evidence of trafficking, online narratives continue to blame the victims. Many believe these women “deserved” the outcomes they faced, a view completely disconnected from the reality of their exploitation.
The documentary shows that women like Karungi and Kayla were trapped in a system driven predominantly by men’s desires. Prostitution thrives because of the demand created by men; without it, the industry would likely collapse.
Statistics indicate that between 10% to 30% of men worldwide have paid for sex at least once, though figures vary by country and survey method. On the other hand, reliable data on women who engage with male sex workers remains scarce.
Mwesigwa exemplifies the impunity of traffickers. Well-connected with top officials, he operates with little fear of prosecution.
“During an interaction with an undercover journalist, he candidly admitted, “I could win the lottery, like a million pounds, but I would still do it… because I enjoy it. It has become part of me,” he revealed without remorse.
For him, and others like him, sex trafficking is not only profitable, it is a personal obsession. The minimum price to access any of Mwesigwa’s victims is $1,000, highlighting the high stakes of this brutal industry.
While there is some female participation in the trafficking of women, the BBC documentary makes it clear: this is largely a male-driven enterprise.
Women are disproportionately blamed, yet it is men like Charles who perpetuate and profit from the suffering of countless young women.
The tragic deaths of Karungi and Kayla expose the harsh realities of human trafficking and the pervasive culture of victim blaming.
These young women were not responsible for the circumstances that led to their exploitation; the blame lies squarely with the traffickers, the clients who fuel demand, and the systemic failures that allow such crimes to continue.
Society must shift its perspective, protect the vulnerable, and hold the real perpetrators accountable. Only then can we hope to prevent similar tragedies and dismantle the exploitative structures that prey on young women.
