Thousands of suspected victims of human trafficking have been released or escaped from scam compounds across Cambodia in recent days, following growing international pressure to address the multibillion-dollar industry.
The Indonesian embassy in Phnom Penh reported that it had received reports from 1,440 of its nationals who had been released from the scam centres, while large queues of Chinese nationals were also seen outside the Chinese embassy.
Amnesty International has geolocated 15 videos and images, and reviewed social media posts that appear to show escape attempts and releases from at least 10 scamming compounds across Cambodia. While there are no exact figures, Amnesty estimates the number of people released to be in the thousands.
The involvement of “officials and economic elites” in the scam industry has resulted in “selective and politically motivated enforcement of laws, inhibiting effective law enforcement action against trafficking crimes,” according to the US Trafficking in Persons Report for 2024.
The Cambodian government has denied suggestions of government complicity, stating that it has “never supported, nor will it ever tolerate, cybercriminal activity” and that it “remains fully committed to integrity, transparency, and adherence to the rule of law and international norms.”
However, the recent crackdown and releases have been described as “unprecedented in Cambodia” by Jacob Sims, a visiting fellow at Harvard University’s Asia Center. He warned that the problem will simply re-emerge if international pressure is not maintained, as the industry has become “too big to fail” and a “major regime patrimonial resource.”
The online scam industry has flourished across parts of Southeast Asia, including in Cambodia, where the UN estimates 100,000 people work inside compounds. Many workers have been duped into accepting jobs in the compounds, and are then held against their will and forced to carry out online scams, including romance-investment scams and crypto fraud.
The Cambodian government has pledged to “eliminate … all the problems related to the crime of cyber scam,” but the effectiveness of its efforts remains to be seen.
