Man, these S.E. Asian countries, these Viets are running like the fall of Saigon

[theking]

60 Vietnamese nationals collectively run for freedom from human traffickers in Cambodia


In the latest incident of the human trafficking crisis in Cambodia, 60 Vietnamese nationals collectively ran for freedom from a Cambodian casino where they were being exploited and held as prisoners.

On Saturday, a group of 60 Vietnamese people fled from a casino under heavy rain in Bavet city in Cambodia’s Svay Rieng province. Four people reportedly failed to escape as they were recaptured by casino guards.

Authorities in Cambodia were later sent out on a recovery mission, where they successfully rescued the four individuals. Cambodian police also managed to rescue 15 more Vietnamese nationals.

On Wednesday, 71 Vietnamese victims were transported back to the Moc Bai International Border Gate in Vietnam’s Tay Ninh Province.

[theking]

Cambodia scams: Lured and trapped into slavery in South East Asia


It was an offer he could not resist: an easy job overseas, a sizeable salary, and even a chance to live in a swanky hotel with his own personal trainer.

When Yang Weibin saw the ad for a telesales role in Cambodia, he immediately said yes. The 35-year-old Taiwanese wasn't making much as a masseur, and he needed to support his parents after his dad suffered a stroke.

Weeks later, Weibin hopped on a plane to Phnom Penh. When he reached the Cambodian capital, he was met by several men who drove him to a nondescript building on a deserted road - not quite the luxury hotel shown in pictures sent by the recruitment agent.

His passport was taken from him - to sort out his paperwork, he was told. He was shown to a small bare room - his new home. And one more thing, the men said: you can't leave the compound, ever.

The penny dropped. "I knew then I had come to the wrong place, that this was a very dangerous situation," he told the BBC.

Weibin is among thousands of workers who in recent months have fallen prey to human traffickers running job scams in South East Asia. Governments across a vast swathe of Asia - including Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Taiwan - have sounded the alarm.

Lured by ads promising easy work and extravagant perks, many are tricked into travelling to Cambodia, Myanmar and Thailand. Once they arrive, they are held prisoner and forced to work in online scam centres known as "fraud factories".

Human trafficking has long been an endemic problem in South East Asia. But experts say criminal networks are now looking further afield and preying on a different type of victim.

Their targets tend to be quite young - many are teenagers. They are also better-educated, computer-literate, and usually speak more than one regional language.

These are seen as key by traffickers who need skilled labour to conduct online criminal activity, ranging from love scams known as "pig butchering" and crypto fraud, to money laundering and illegal gambling.

Chi Tin from Vietnam told the BBC he had to pose as a woman and befriend strangers online.

"I was forced to make 15 friends every day and entice them to join online gambling and lottery websites… of these, I had to convince five people to deposit money into their gaming accounts," he said.

"The manager told me to work obediently, not to try to escape or resist or I will be taken to the torture room… Many others told me if they did not meet the target, they would be starved and beaten."

The abuse often results in lasting trauma. Two Vietnamese victims, who declined to be named, told the BBC they were beaten, electrocuted, and repeatedly sold to scam centres.

One of them is just 15 years old. Her face disfigured by the abuse, she has dropped out of school since returning home, ashamed to face her friends.

The other, a 25 year old man, shared this picture taken by one of his captors which was used to demand a ransom from his family. It shows him handcuffed to a metal bedframe with visible bruises on one knee where he was electrocuted.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-62792875

[Visualmon]

I thought Cambodia was a land of buddhism. I suppose not.