In 2006, Cambodia was a source, transit, and destination country for human trafficking. The traffickers were reportedly organized crime syndicates, parents, relatives, friends, intimate partners, and neighbors.[1]
Cambodia ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in July 2007.[2]
Despite human trafficking being a crime in Cambodia,[3] the country has a significant child sex tourism problem;[3][4][5][6] some children are sold by their parents, while others are lured by what they think are legitimate job offers like waitressing, but then are forced into prostitution. Children are often held captive, beaten, and starved to force them into prostitution. Fraud factories have also proliferated in Cambodia during the 2020s.
In 2022, the U.S. Department of State’s Trafficking in Persons Report downgraded Cambodia to "Tier 3" due to the Cambodian government's failure to meet the minimum standards to eliminate human trafficking and insufficient effort to address human trafficking.[7] Cambodia had previously hovered between Tier 2 and the Tier 2 watch lists.[1][8] The country remained at Tier 3 in 2023.[9]
In 2023, the Organised Crime Index gave the country a score of 8.5 out of 10 for human trafficking, noting a sharp increase in numbers after Covid.[10]
Survey
editA UNICEF survey concluded that 35% of Cambodia's 15,000 prostitutes are children under the age of 16. Almost all of Cambodian brothels are Vietnamese-owned, with most of its prostitutes being of Vietnamese descent and captured sex slaves being of other ethnic groups. Men are trafficked for forced labor in the agriculture, fishing, and construction industries. Women are trafficked for sexual exploitation and forced labor in factories or as domestic servants. Children are trafficked for sexual exploitation and forced labor in organized begging rings, soliciting, and street vending.[1]
Common destinations for trafficking victims are Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, and Sihanoukville.[11]
Conditions
editPimps are reported to imprison young children who are virgins. These children would not be placed to work until they had been presented to a series of bidders, such as high-ranking military officers, politicians, businessmen, and foreign tourists. Young girls working in brothels are in effect, sex slaves; they receive no money, only food, and armed guards stop them from running away.[12] Children are often held captive, beaten, and starved to force them into prostitution.[3]
Cases
editIn 1995, a 15-year-old child that was trafficked into prostitution in a brothel in the Svay Por district of Battambang was beaten to death.[13]
Child sex trafficking
editChildren as young as 3 are being sold as slaves for sex.[3] By some estimates, hundreds of thousands of children are bought, sold, or kidnapped around the world each year and then forced to have sex.[3] ECPAT Cambodia reports that as many as one third of the trafficking victims in prostitution are children.[14]
Foreign child molesters
editThe MOI reported the arrest of 31 foreign child molesters in Cambodia in 2009.[15]
Forced to Fraud
editThere are significant reports on human trafficking on forced to fraud in Cambodia. Victims are forced to fraud the Internet users worldwide. If they don't want to fraud, they are risk to organ harvesting. [16][17]
Laws
editA law was passed in January 1997 to curb trafficking in women, with fines of up to $12,000 and prison sentences of up to 20 years for pimps and brothel owners.
In 2008, the Government introduced the Law on Suppression of Human Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation, which criminalizes all forms of trafficking. However, the country remained a source, destination, and transit country for men, women, and children trafficked for sexual exploitation and labor. Children were trafficked domestically for sexual exploitation.[15]
Cambodia is party to several international covenants prohibiting the trafficking of persons and the exploitation of women and children.[11]
Cambodia has continued to assist U.S. law enforcement authorities in the transfer to U.S. custody of Americans who have sexually exploited children in Cambodia.[1]
Anti-Human Trafficking Day
editDecember 12 is observed as National Anti-Human Trafficking Day in Cambodia.[11]
Non-governmental organizations
editOn the ground in Cambodia, a number of non-governmental organizations and non-profit organizations are working to combat human trafficking. These include AFESIP, the Somaly Mam Foundation, Hagar International, ECPAT,[18] and Agape International Missions.[19] There are also other development partners that work together to fight against human trafficking.[20][21][22]
Overseas cyber slaves
editOverseas job scams are rampant in Cambodia. People are lured in by offers of a high-paying job with little to no experience or work visa needed, then held hostage under threats of violence and forced to work as "cyber slaves" in call centers making scam phone calls and other cryptocurrency and online gambling schemes. Citizens from Vietnam and Chinese-speaking countries are most frequently targeted.[23][24] People are tortured and may be sold if they refused to scam others.[25]
On 17 August 2022, 42 Vietnamese victims escaped from the Golden Phoenix casino near the Chrey Thom border checkpoint by swimming across the Binh Di River. Among them, a 16-year-old boy drowned crossing the river. On 17 September 2022, a group of 60 Vietnamese people fled from a casino in Bavet city in Svay Rieng province. Cambodian police later managed to rescue 15 more Vietnamese nationals.[26]
References
edit- ^ a b c d "Cambodia 2005". HumanTrafficking.org. 2005-05-06. Archived from the original on 2006-04-20. Retrieved 2012-02-10.
- ^ United Nations Treaty Collection website, Chapter XVIII Penal Matters section, Section 12a, retrieved August 19, 2024
- ^ a b c d e "Children for sale". MSNBC. Retrieved 2008-03-01.
- ^ Gittings, John (2000-11-16). "The tragic tale of the Cambodian child prostitutes". Guardian. London. Retrieved 2008-03-01.
- ^ Harding, Andrew (2005-06-11). "Trapping Cambodia's sex tourists". BBC. Retrieved 2008-03-01.
- ^ "Cambodia gets tough on child sex trade". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 2008-03-01.
- ^ "2022 Trafficking in Persons Report". US Department of State. July 2022.
- ^ "Trafficking in Persons Report 2017: Tier Placements". www.state.gov. Archived from the original on 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
- ^ US Government website, Trafficking in Persons Report 2023
- ^ Organised Crime Index website, Cambodia: 2023
- ^ a b c "AFESIP Siem Reap Center held International Women's Day". AFESIP. 2009-12-03. Retrieved 2012-02-10.
- ^ "Asian Child Rights". Asian Human Rights Commission. Archived from the original on 2010-03-30. Retrieved 2010-05-18.
- ^ "Cambodia". Coalition Against Trafficking in Women. Archived from the original on 2010-01-18. Retrieved 2010-05-18.
- ^ CCPCR[permanent dead link] (password-protected)
- ^ a b "US Department of State: Cambodia". Archived from the original on 2010-03-24. Retrieved 2010-05-18.
- ^ "Cyber slavery: inside Cambodia's online scam gangs". Archived from the original on 2021-09-01.
- ^ "Meet Cambodia's cyber slaves". Archived from the original on 2022-08-11.
- ^ "Somaly Mam Foundation". Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved November 1, 2013.
- ^ Steve Milne (May 9, 2011). "Area Couple Fighting Sex Slavery In Cambodia". Capital Public Radio. Archived from the original on November 4, 2013. Retrieved February 19, 2013.
- ^ "12 December 2009 is observed as National Anti-Human Trafficking Day in Cambodia !". Afesip.org. 2009-12-03. Retrieved 2012-02-10.
- ^ "Hagar Cambodia". Hagar International. Archived from the original on 29 August 2011. Retrieved 19 September 2011.
- ^ "ECPAT Cambodia". Phnom Penh, Cambodia: ECPAT Cambodia. Archived from the original on February 1, 2012. Retrieved January 26, 2012.
- ^ "Why are Malaysians falling for deadly job scams in Cambodia, and what is Putrajaya doing to prevent more victims?". 29 September 2022.
- ^ "Cambodia scams: Lured and trapped into slavery in South East Asia". BBC News. 20 September 2022.
- ^ "Inside the 'living hell' of Cambodia's scam operations". 9 November 2022.
- ^ "60 Vietnamese nationals collectively run for freedom from human traffickers in Cambodia". 21 September 2022.