'I am worried about the kids!' Cyan Boujee had concerns about promoting Russian programme as early as July
Cyan Boujee reveals concerns over Russian Alababuga Start programme.
Image: Instagram/cyan.boujee24
Controversial influencer Cyan Boujee has revealed more details about the Russian Alabuga Start programme that she promoted on her social media accounts, revealing that she had concerns about the treatment of the young women on the programme as early as July.
The influencer, whose real name is Honour Zuma, was among a group of influencers including the likes of Munaka, Zille and Seemah, amongst others, who have faced sharp criticism for promoting the programme as unproven claims of human trafficking were made on social media.
Some of the influencers have had their social media accounts - which have millions of followers, banned as a result of mass reporting by members of the public.
On Monday, some of the influencers along with Siya Mhlungu, one of the agencies who facilitated the social media campaign, took part in a two hour tell-all on MacG's Podcast and Chill vodcast, addressing the recent controversy.
They all said they saw no evidence of any human trafficking, while Mhlungu expressed that the Russian Embassy and the South African Government had both expressed there was no evidence of human trafficking.
Mhlungu said his agency's assessment of the issue was that some members of the public were using the saga as an instrument to settle personal scores against some of the influencers, pointing to the material facts that no one cared for the official responses from the South African and Russian governments on the issue, while also questioning who the alleged trafficked individuals were.
In recent days the programme has gone viral due to its alleged vagueness and has been alleged by netizens of being a human trafficking scheme. This has been vehemently denied by one of the social media agencies responsible for it, as well as the governments, who said there was no evidence of the human trafficking claims.
Cyan Boujee's red flags
In a video posted on social media on Monday, Cyan Boujee has admitted to spotting some "red flags" when she was in Tatarstan, Russia. She shared how she had communicated her concerns to a PR Manager responsible for the campaign, but despite having concerns, she still went on to post about the campaign, encouraging young women to take part in the programme.
"I said to myself, 'let me just act like a villain'. Am I regretting it... Of course. I will never sell any woman intentionally. I'm going to say some dodgy stuff I figured from this programme," she said, revealing a voice note she sent to a manager on July 27, complaining about her experience in Russia.
"I was specific in saying that if they wanted to work with influencers, something is going to expose this brand, and I didn't know that God was going to use me. I said they have to be legit because this is bulls***"
She also accused those running the project of being unprofessional in their conduct around her and forcing the girl to give answers they approved of.
"I am worried about the kids. When I interviewed them yesterday, most of them were not happy, especially with the answers they had to give on camera," she said on the voice note.
"For example, one lady was asked about accommodation, and she cried. I was in disbelief. We had to wait for so long for that girl to calm down so that she can lie and say everything is good."
However, other influencers who went to the region denied seeing any worrying signs.
On a special edition of MacG's podcast, influencers Zille, Seemah, and Monaka discussed how agencies approached them early this year to promote Alabuga Start.
In contrast to Zuma, Seemah and Monaka, the trio regarded their experiences in Russia as safe and professional, stating that the women they worked with were well-treated, living in appropriate housing, and learning skills such as the Russian language. They stressed that they had not seen any signs of trafficking, although some had complained of working long hours.
The Russian Embassy denied allegations that its Alabuga Start programme is recruiting young women for human trafficking syndicates.
"Many of the commentators were quick to accuse Russia of human trafficking and exploitation based on unfounded allegations. It needs to be stressed that the Embassy has no information, apart from that spread through some biased outlets, of foreign nationals being subjected to forced labour, tricked into some actions, or otherwise experiencing violation of their rights in the course of the programme," the Russian Embassy said.
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