Cambodian government deliberately ignoring modern slavery scam compounds

*Trigger warning: This article contains mention of physical torture and death

Desperate job seekers applying for what they think are genuine jobs are instead trafficked into prison-like compounds buried in the Cambodian jungle. Operating on a vast scale, survivors report being trapped and forced to conduct scams or face torture. All while the Cambodian government deliberately looks the other way according to a new report released by Amnesty International.  

Trapped in a living nightmare 

A laundry list of human rights abuses are being committed by Chinese criminal gangs as part of a billion-dollar cyber-scam “shadow economy” in the remote jungles of Cambodia. A list that includes modern slavery, human trafficking, child labor and torture according to survivors interviewed for the new Amnesty report “I Was Someone Else’s Property”.  

Visiting over 50 compounds, talking to 58 survivors and reviewing testimony from 336 more, the research shines a light on a trafficking and forced labor scheme affecting thousands. One survivor interviewed spent 11 months held against her will, forced to work on scams. When she did try to escape, she was severely beaten.  

She shared: 

“There were four men… three of them held me down while the boss hit me on the soles of my feet with a metal pole… They told me that if I don’t stop screaming, they’re going to keep hitting [me] until I stop,”  

Another survivor described seeing someone beaten by compound bosses for around 25 minutes, he said:

“They just keep beating [the Vietnamese person] until their body was…purple…then [using] the electric baton. Beat the Vietnamese until he can’t scream, can’t get up…then the boss tell me that they wait until another compound want to buy him.” 

Desperate job seekers applying for what they think are genuine jobs are finding themselves instead trafficked into prison-like compounds buried in the Cambodian jungle. Operating on a vast scale, survivors report being trapped and forced to conduct scams or face torture. All while the Cambodian government deliberately looks the other way according to a new report released by Amnesty International.  

Trapped in a living nightmare 

A laundry list of human rights abuses are being committed by Chinese criminal gangs as part of a billion-dollar cyber-scam “shadow economy” in the remote jungles of Cambodia. A list that includes modern slavery, human trafficking, child labor and torture according to survivors interviewed for the new Amnesty report “I Was Someone Else’s Property”.  

Visiting over 50 compounds, talking to 58 survivors and reviewing testimony from 336 more, the research shines a light on a trafficking and forced labor scheme affecting thousands. One survivor interviewed spent 11 months held against her will, forced to work on scams. When she did try to escape, she was severely beaten.  

She shared: 

“There were four men… three of them held me down while the boss hit me on the soles of my feet with a metal pole… They told me that if I don’t stop screaming, they’re going to keep hitting [me] until I stop,”  

Another survivor described seeing someone beaten by compound bosses for around 25 minutes, he said:

“They just keep beating [the Vietnamese person] until their body was…purple…then [using] the electric baton. Beat the Vietnamese until he can’t scream, can’t get up…then the boss tell me that they wait until another compound want to buy him.” 

All but one of those interviewed said they were victims of human trafficking. All of them said they were victims of forced labor under the threat of violence. For some, the price was even higher. Those interviewed frequently mentioned deaths they had witnessed. With one survivor recounting hearing the unmistakable sound of a body hitting the roof of a building. 

Coordinating + Colluding = Complicity 

Sadly, the evidence also points to possible coordination and collusion between Chinese compound bosses and the Cambodian police. The government claims they are tackling the scamming crisis through the National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking (NCCT) and by doing “rescues” of victims from compounds. Yet two-thirds of the compounds identified are still open. This despite a raft of evidence and survivor testimony detailing the exploitation and abuse taking place inside. 

Amnesty International’s Regional Research Director Montse Ferrer said: 

“The Cambodian authorities know what is going on inside scamming compounds, yet they allow it to continue. Our findings reveal a pattern of state failures that have allowed criminality to flourish and raise questions about the government’s motivations,”   

Further, “rescues” by law enforcement don’t involve raids or even entering the compound at all. Instead, when a victim manages to contact law enforcement, police meet a manager or security guard at the gate. The individual(s) who called for help are handed over. But no one enters the compound or does any further investigation. Then it’s back to the work-a-day routine at the compound. 

Montse Ferrer, Amnesty International’s Regional Research Director stated: 

“The Cambodian government could put a stop to these abuses, but it has chosen not to. The police interventions documented appear to be merely ‘for show’,”   

Adding insult to injury, the Cambodian authorities often fail to recognize those they “rescue” from the compounds as victims of human trafficking. A distinction which would provide them with support as required under international law. Instead, the lucky few “rescue” victims are often detained in immigration detention centers in poor conditions for months at a time.   

“Slavery thrives when governments look away” 

International human rights law requires Cambodia, and all nations, to ensure that no one is held in slavery or servitude or under conditions of forced labor. And it is required to prevent, prohibit, investigate, and prosecute acts of torture. 

Ferrer stated: 

“Cambodia’s authorities must ensure no more jobseekers are trafficked into the country to face torture, slavery or any other human rights abuse. They must urgently investigate and shut down all scamming compounds and properly identify, assist, and protect victims. Slavery thrives when governments look away.”  

Freedom United stands beside Amnesty International and other human rights organizations in calling on the Cambodian government to effectively investigate, prosecute and adjudicate trafficking, wherever it is taking place. We also demand that trafficking survivors be appropriately identified and provided with support.  

Coordinating + Colluding = Complicity 

Sadly, the evidence also points to possible coordination and collusion between Chinese compound bosses and the Cambodian police. The government claims they are tackling the scamming crisis through the National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking (NCCT) and by doing “rescues” of victims from compounds. Yet two-thirds of the compounds identified are still open. This despite a raft of evidence and survivor testimony detailing the exploitation and abuse taking place inside. 

Amnesty International’s Regional Research Director Montse Ferrer said: 

“The Cambodian authorities know what is going on inside scamming compounds, yet they allow it to continue. Our findings reveal a pattern of state failures that have allowed criminality to flourish and raise questions about the government’s motivations,”   

Further, “rescues” by law enforcement don’t involve raids or even entering the compound at all. Instead, when a victim manages to contact law enforcement, police meet a manager or security guard at the gate. The individual(s) who called for help are handed over. But no one enters the compound or does any further investigation. Then it’s back to the work-a-day routine at the compound. 

Montse Ferrer, Amnesty International’s Regional Research Director stated: 

“The Cambodian government could put a stop to these abuses, but it has chosen not to. The police interventions documented appear to be merely ‘for show’,”   

Adding insult to injury, the Cambodian authorities often fail to recognize those they “rescue” from the compounds as victims of human trafficking. A distinction which would provide them with support as required under international law. Instead, the lucky few “rescue” victims are often detained in immigration detention centers in poor conditions for months at a time.   

“Slavery thrives when governments look away” 

International human rights law obliges Cambodia and all other countries to prevent and eliminate slavery, servitude, and forced labor. It also requires authorities to prevent, investigate, and prosecute acts of torture.

Ferrer stated: 

“Cambodia’s authorities must ensure no more jobseekers are trafficked into the country to face torture, slavery or any other human rights abuse. They must urgently investigate and shut down all scamming compounds and properly identify, assist, and protect victims. Slavery thrives when governments look away.”  

Freedom United stands beside Amnesty International and other human rights organizations in calling on the Cambodian government to effectively investigate, prosecute and adjudicate trafficking, wherever it is taking place. We also demand that trafficking survivors be appropriately identified and provided with support.