Mekong News
Preying on Cambodia's poor

Human trafficking in Cambodia is set to rise because of increasing poverty, according to humanitarian workers, with many destined for lives as beggars or boatmen in Thailand.

It is already a significant problem, but with soaring food and fuel prices over the past six months, many more people are likely to fall victims to the traffickers, especially women and children.

"The lure of a better life and a secure income is bound to trap more unsuspecting youngsters into the grip of these trafficking rings," Lim Tith, project coordinator for the United Nations Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking in the Greater Mekong Sub- region (Uniap) in Cambodia, told Spectrum.

Earlier this year the Cambodian government introduced a new anti-trafficking law, and while it has raised awareness of the issue, it has also led to a draconian crackdown on sex workers, instead of trying to tackle all forms of trafficking and its root causes, according to Vicheth Tuon, chief executive officer of the NGO Coalition to Address Trafficking and (Sexual) Exploitation of Children in Cambodia (Cosecam).

"Trafficking is a mega-problem in Cambodia, and its becoming a critical issue that needs to be tackled head-on, in a coordinated and comprehensive way," Mr Tuon said. "In Cambodia, all aspects of trafficking are involved: supply, transit and destination. It has grown immensely in the last 10 years since the end of the conflict."

In Cambodia, men and women, boys and girls are all susceptible to being trafficked, according to UN officials. Some are trafficked inside the country, while others are sent abroad.

Most trafficking in Cambodia appears to be for labour exploitation according to UN officials.

While some women and children are recruited by the gangs and forced into the sex trade - most of this takes place in Cambodia where they are lured away from the countryside to work in the major urban centres of Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville - most victims, though, end up in domestic service, factories, ships or as beggars and scavengers on the streets.

"I came to Phnom Penh to work in a restaurant," a 22-year old bar-girl, Pong Ly Kaeng, said. "The owner came to our village in Svay Raeng and promised my sister he would look after me and pay me a good salary. So I went with him. But I left when the owner tried to make me have sex with a customer. Then my cousin found me a job in the bar. But I don't sleep with all my customers."

Such stories are typical among the girls working in Phnom Penh's entertainment industry - hostess bars, karaoke clubs, beer gardens and brothels.

At least 20% of sex workers in Phnom Penh have been trafficked, said Mr Lim. "It is difficult to estimate the number of people being trafficked into Phnom Penh to be commercial sex workers, but it is a constant stream. Maybe as many as 500 a month are coming," he said.

Women have also been trafficked abroad for sexual exploitation in the past, according to UN officials. "A few years ago there was a major case of Cambodian women being smuggled into Somalia," Mr Lim said.

There have also been a few cases of women being transported to Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to become commercial sex workers.

Of course there are also many Vietnamese women who have been trafficked from southern Vietnam to work in Phnom Penh's sex industry. Many of them are under-age, a Cambodian aid worker who monitors the situation said, but declined to be identified for fear it might endanger her security.

In an effort to crack down on human trafficking, and in response to pressure from the United States, the Cambodian government introduced new anti-trafficking legislation nearly six months ago. However most NGOs believe the legislation only made the situation worse, for instead of targetting the traffickers, the authorities went after the sex workers.

"A lot of sex workers have been arrested without clear evidence and are being kept in detention centres where the conditions are atrocious," Mr Tuom said. "The victims of trafficking are being persecuted - they are worse-off than before."

The answer is not to close down brothels and the street sex-trade - the girls need the income and their families depend on them, or they need to have alternative employment. "Cracking down on sex workers is not the answer," Mr Tuom insisted. "This campaign is also dangerous as it forces sex workers underground, creating health concerns, and increasing the risk of HIV infections as they are less likely to use condoms."

Instead the government should be targetting the traffickers and not commercial sex workers, according to international aid groups working in Cambodia.

"Legislation is a necessary component to stop the spread of HIV and Aids," Tony Lisle, the UN Aids chief in Cambodia, said. "Now we need to make sure the police understand the intent of the law - and that the laws criminalise traffickers, not consenting sex workers".

The traffickers though still ply their trade with impunity. While a few minor gang members have been arrested recently, aid workers fear they are scapegoats and believe the top men involved in the trafficking rings are left alone. "No one can touch the ring leaders," said Mr Tuom. "Everyone knows who they are, but because of their power and influence, they are left untouched by the police."

Another disturbing trend which is now emerging is young children being trafficked into Thailand and Vietnam to work as street sellers or beggars.

Most of the young girls selling flowers in Bangkok's red-light districts are Cambodians, like seven-year-old Kimmi from Phnom Penh who has been selling roses in Nana Plaza for more than two years. Her father sold her to a trafficker for $50 (1,800 baht).

Cambodian children, especially from the western provinces, are being trafficked to Vietnam to beg and to a lesser extent working as scavengers in the southern capital, Ho Chi Minh City.

"Handicapped children are particularly vulnerable, as they are believed to be more effective beggars," said Mr Lim. "Up to 700 children a month are being trafficked across the borders."

Most Cambodians who are trafficked now end up in sweat shops, construction sites, fishing trawlers and domestic service, mainly in Malaysia, Thailand and Taiwan, according to UN officials.

"One of our current concerns is Cambodian men who are being trafficked to work on fishing boats in Malaysia and Thailand," said Mr Lim.

More than 4,000 a year are being trafficked. They are passed on through a network - from local recruiter to another either in Phnom Penh or the border town of Poipet - to a Thai gang and then sold onto a boat, he said.

The conditions on most of these boats are intolerable, and few safety precautions are taken. The ships usually put to sea for six months at a time.

"Once on the fishing boat, life is unbearable; we get little to eat and are often beaten," Kong, a former Cambodian fisherman on a boat based in southern Thailand, said. "It's so bad there are only two choices: commit suicide or jump ship," he said.

In the past few months scores of Cambodian men have escaped from the boats, especially in Malaysia, and contacted the local authorities and UN officials. Many of them have already been repatriated but others are still waiting to return home. The UN is working with the governments in the area, especially Thailand, to identify the traffickers and arrest them.

"Several local brokers or recruiters, living in Cambodia, have already been detained," according to Mr Lim. But this is only the tip of the iceberg, with most traffickers left alone by the authorities.

"It's an uphill battle. Human trafficking is a major industry and it's growing every month."

There are more than 200,000 trafficked Cambodians working in factories and boats in Malaysia and Thailand. At least half of them have been trafficked, according to UN surveys. In interviews with illegal migrants returning through the border down of Poipet, the UN Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking found that more than half of them had been trafficked.

"The situation remains critical, and the fact that it remains hidden makes it much harder for the government and development workers," Mr Tuom said.

The statistics do not show the real picture. More detailed and comprehensive research is needed urgently. "To be able to tackle the problem more effectively we need to know the real extent of trafficking," he said.

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