Thirteen women from the Philippines have been convicted on human trafficking-related charges in Cambodia for acting as surrogates in a scheme selling babies to foreigners.
The Kandal Provincial Court sentenced the women to four years in prison, with two years suspended, meaning their prison time will only be served if they are convicted of another crime. The court announced the verdict late Monday.
Currently, the women are held in a police hospital outside Phnom Penh, and authorities had previously indicated that they would not serve prison time until after they gave birth. The women have the option to appeal the ruling, although the court spokesperson, So Sarin, declined to disclose how many are still pregnant or what would happen to the infants post-delivery.
Surrogacy has become increasingly common in developing countries due to significantly lower costs compared to the United States and Australia, where services can reach up to $150,000. The situation in Cambodia is notable, as surrogates are typically engaged in their home countries rather than transported abroad.
Authorities announced that the business recruiting these women was based in Thailand, which coordinated their food and accommodation in Cambodia.
The women were arrested in late September during a raid on a villa in Kandal province, where 20 Filipinos and four Vietnamese were found. When charges were filed in October, Cambodia’s Interior Ministry stated that ringleaders had not yet been identified and characterized the women as conspirators who collaborated with organizers to act as surrogates and sell the babies for profit, rather than as victims.
Eleven women who were not pregnant were deported, while the thirteen Filipinos were charged under the updated law on the Suppression of Human Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation, which prohibits commercial surrogacy in Cambodia. The law was enacted following Cambodia’s rise as a destination for foreigners seeking surrogates.
The country has earned a negative reputation regarding human trafficking, particularly related to online scams in which foreigners are lured with false job offers and subjected to virtual slavery while facilitating fraud against targets worldwide.
The surrogacy industry in Cambodia expanded significantly after restrictions were imposed in neighboring Thailand, as well as in India and Nepal. In July 2017, a Cambodian court sentenced an Australian woman and two local associates to eighteen months in prison for providing commercial surrogacy services.
Credit: CNN
