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Foreign Correspondent

Raquel Carvalho is an independent journalist who covers migration, human trafficking, labour rights, gender equality, security, and conflict. She is one of the two 2025 International Women’s Media Foundation’s Kim Wall Memorial Fund awardees. Raquel has contributed to several global news outlets, such as TIME and Al Jazeera English. She is a former Asia Correspondent at the South China Morning Post, where she previously worked as a reporter on the Hong Kong desk. Raquel has led a host of cross-border investigations and multimedia collaborations. Her long-form work has been highlighted by the World Association of News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) Awards, the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) Awards, UN Women, and the International Labour Organization. She is a recipient of the Journalism fund Europe’s Modern Slavery Unveiled Grant. Raquel is based in Hong Kong and has reported from across Asia for over 15 years – with short stints in Latin America, the United States, and Europe. 

My Articles

The Telegraph •

‘Like a death sentence:’ Sick migrant women abandoned in Asia’s wealthiest cities

“My baby,” Nancy repeats, as she sobs, dabbing a crumpled white tissue at her weathered eyes.Nancy, a Filipino domestic worker in Hong Kong, is referring to the youngest daughter of her former employers. When she started working for them in 2002, the girl had not yet been born.Nancy was there for every milestone – from her first tentative steps to the day she left for university in England.“I couldn’t take longer holidays because she would often get sick while I was away,” recalled Nancy, whose...
TIME •

She Regrets Her Past With ISIS. Now She’s Reclaiming Her Future

Clad in a flowery hijab of pastel and dark hues, Mawar*, 49, sorts packages of homemade fried chips into paper boxes before storing freshly squeezed bitter melon juice in the freezer. Her youngest son, a barefoot 10-year-old sporting a Spanish national soccer team t-shirt, darts in and out of the tiled porch of their food shop. Outside, where lush palm leaves droop over parked motorbikes, he chuckles with his friends as four of them huddle around an iPad, eyes fixed on the glowing screen.They se...
Al Jazeera •

‘Justice is hard’: Hong Kong domestic workers welcome rare rape conviction

One of the few successful prosecutions involving a foreign domestic worker underlines the challenges faced by migrant women in securing justice.Hong Kong, China – A 36-year-old foreign domestic worker in Hong Kong was on her way to throw out the rubbish when her Swedish employer arrived home late one night in October 2022.X, as she was known in court to protect her identity, said he appeared to be drunk.Soon he was demanding sex.She said she tried to reason with him, rejecting his advances. But...
South China Morning Post •

Narcos: the world's hidden drug highways

It was one of those hot summer days in early August when the skin has no rest from the burning sun, drier than usual. Daniela, from Venezuela, was landing for the first time in Hong Kong, wearing a black jacket, white shirt, bell-bottomed jeans, and high heels.
She was pregnant, but that wasn't all she was carrying. Strapped to each of her legs were four packs of cocaine.
As hard to bear as the drugs Daniela claims she was forced to bring in were her memories – of days of...
South China Morning Post •

China in Latin America: partner or predator?

Whether they're new colonisers or a vital source of cash and technology, the jury is out on Beijing's investment in the region – but one thing is certain, the US will not relinquish its control without a fight

For the United States, China’s widening presence in Latin America has been much more than a minor nuisance in its geopolitical backyard.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned on a tour of the region in April that “predatory” lending practices and other “malign or nefarious” beh...
South China Morning Post •

Bride trafficking, a problem on China’s belt and road

Louise was living from hand to mouth while helping her aunt sell noodle soup in the Laos capital of Vientiane, which sits on a curve of the Mekong River. Their lives were mostly untouched by the increasing Chinese investment in their country that in recent years has built billion-dollar dams, bridges and railways.

Louise* was in her early 20s and had few professional prospects when she was approached by a woman who told her there were great opportunities in China, the country’s northern neighbo...
Al Jazeera •

These Filipinos paid thousands for a job in Poland. Now they feel cheated

This is the first article in a two-part series about alleged exploitation of Filipino migrant workers. Hong Kong, China – The sizzling of chicken adobo – a sweet and savoury Filipino dish – fills the air of a high-rise apartment in Doha.It is Sunday, Andrea’s only day off, and she is preparing dinner before another long work week begins.After more than five years in the Qatari capital, Andrea* has long been tired of her sales job and living conditions in the city, where she shares a flat with th...
South China Morning Post •

How Macau became North Korea’s window to the world

Described as sociable and generous, polyglot Kim would send over drinks to neighbouring tables whenever he saw familiar faces. While dining in the restaurant, at least for a few hours, he would be just another customer.

Sitting in this sophisticated restaurant on Taipa island, few would guess the former Portuguese enclave was an important gateway for North Korea to the world. Yet, allegedly, it was a nexus of money-laundering and weapons and drug trafficking for Pyongyang. And for almost two de...