Taiwanese authorities have helped 11 more people escape from human traffickers in Cambodia.
The victims are among hundreds of Taiwanese people who have fallen prey to criminal gangs that lure people to the country with the promise of high-paying jobs. The traffickers then force their victims to work in international fraud networks that scam people out of their money.
Taiwan’s Criminal Investigation Bureau discovered the locations of the 11 victims while investigating one of Taiwan's criminal Triads, the Bamboo Union.
Police then dispatched bureau official Chan Li-tse to Vietnam to help bring them home. Taiwan’s rescue operations have often centered on Vietnam, because Taiwan has no representative office in Cambodia.
While in Vietnam, Chan contacted Cambodia’s interior minister, Sar Kheng, via the minister’s Facebook page and provided him with the victims’ names, passport numbers and locations.
Local authorities then helped them return home to Taiwan over the past two days.
The victims say they were aware of the dangers of working in Cambodia but video interviews with the employers reassured them it was safe.
Traffickers typically confiscate their victims’ passports after they arrive in Cambodia, and any disobedience can lead to violent beatings. Chan says one victim told him another victim accidentally filmed some equipment and was beaten so savagely that he fell to the ground “like a puppet.”
Human trafficking expert Mina Chiang has told Radio Taiwan International that the human trafficking ring in Cambodia is unprecedented in its size and scale. She’s encouraging the public not to blame the victims for being scammed so more people will be willing to come forward and help authorities crack down on the crime syndicates.
Police estimate around 500 Taiwanese people are still in Cambodia awaiting rescue.