Thirteen women from the Philippines have been convicted on human trafficking-related charges in Cambodia for participating in a scheme that involved selling babies to foreigners for cash. The women were each sentenced to four years in prison, with two of the years being suspended. They were found guilty of selling, buying, or exchanging a person for cross-border transfer, as per the Kandal Provincial Court's verdict.
The women, who are currently held at a police hospital outside Phnom Penh, will not serve their prison time until after giving birth. It was reported that the surrogacy business that recruited them was based in Thailand, and their stay in Cambodia was arranged from there.
Surrogacy has been a popular practice in developing countries due to lower costs compared to countries like the United States and Australia, where such services can be expensive, costing around $150,000. The case in Cambodia was unique as surrogates are typically employed within their own countries and not transported elsewhere.
In a raid conducted in late September, 20 Filipinos and four Vietnamese were found at a villa in Kandal province, leading to the arrest of the women. The Cambodian Interior Ministry stated that while the ringleaders were not identified, the women were considered offenders who conspired with organizers to act as surrogates and sell babies for profit.
Following the charges, 11 non-pregnant women were deported, while the 13 Filipinos were charged under laws against human trafficking and sexual exploitation. Cambodia had updated its laws in 2016 to prohibit commercial surrogacy after becoming a sought-after destination for foreigners seeking surrogacy services.
Cambodia has faced issues with human trafficking, particularly in cases involving online scams where individuals are lured under false pretenses and exploited. The surge in the surrogacy business in Cambodia followed strict regulations in neighboring countries like Thailand, India, and Nepal.
In a separate incident in July 2017, an Australian woman and two Cambodian associates were sentenced to 1 1/2 years in prison for providing commercial surrogacy services.
