Amnesty International has urged Cambodian authorities to act swiftly to protect thousands of people escaping from scamming compounds, after a wave of videos revealed mass releases and desperate flight attempts across the country. The rights group says many victims, trafficked into forced labour and detention, now risk being stranded without support and vulnerable to re-trafficking.

The footage, verified by Amnesty, shows at least 15 clips from 10 compounds in the past 36 hours, including disturbing scenes of people being beaten by guards in Bavet. These images, the organisation argues, highlight the scale of Cambodia’s scamming industry and expose the government’s failure to investigate and prosecute those behind it.

Amnesty is calling for immediate assistance, safe shelter, and access to justice for victims. It has warned against forcibly returning them to countries where they may face persecution. The group insists that testimonies, if given voluntarily, should be used in court to hold perpetrators, landlords and companies linked to the operations accountable.

Cambodia’s government announced a nationwide crackdown in July 2025, claiming more than 3,000 victims had been freed. Yet Amnesty says abuses persist, pointing to its June 2025 report which identified over 50 compounds as sites of slavery, trafficking and torture. The report concluded that authorities had failed to prevent these crimes and suggested evidence of state complicity or deliberate inaction.

With victims continuing to emerge from compounds, Amnesty’s latest warning underscores the urgency of tackling a shadow industry that has tarnished Cambodia’s reputation and left thousands in peril. The question now is whether the government will deliver on promises of reform—or allow the cycle of exploitation to continue.

-2026-01-23

This was the root cause of Hun Sen's falling out with Thailand.

It had nothing to do with a bit of temple land in disputed areas.

If we delve deep enough, we find that Hun Sen is at the top of the tree and the main beneficiary of this income stream.

The fact that Thailand, under pressure from the outside, was clamping down didn't sit well with him.