Malaysian, Thai Police Face Cross-border Sex Trafficking Concerns

[george]

Malaysian, Thai police face cross-border sex trafficking concerns

SONGKHLA: -- Thai and Malaysian police will take joint action to combat the cross-border the trade in involuntary sex workers between the two neighbouring nations.

Ninth Police Region commissioner Pol. Lt-Gen. Panya Tiensart presided over a joint seminar entitled ''Save Our Daughters'' in Songkhla to adopt joint measures for the Thai and Malaysian police to combat forced prostitution along the common border.

Areas where prostitution had intensified over the past several years included Betong, Sugai Kolok, Sadao and Hat Yai in Thailand as well as seven states inside Malaysia.

Police questioning of trafficking suspects as well as victims and witnesses will be jointly conducted by Thai and Malaysian police.

Information pertaining to the trafficking underworld will be exchanged by the two sides, and witness protection programmes will be provided.

Some 532 officially documented children and women were reported to have been lured or forced into prostitution by both male and female procurers during the past several years, including 489 Thai nationals, with the remainder being nationals of Cambodia. Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, including Karen and Shan ethnic groups. (TNA)

-- TNA 2008-08-14

[Scott]

I want to wish them the best of luck. It's good if they can cooperate on something. Maybe next they can round up the terrorists.

[Tony Clifton]

Last I heard about this was an article (somewhere on Thaivisa) mentioning a Thai cop caught at thgat border with women locked in the trunk.

[mahtin]

Malaysian, Thai police face cross-border sex trafficking concerns

Sounds like one-way traffic.

Call in the traffic police?

[Briggsy]

The police have been profiting from the cross-border trafficking of prostitutes (voluntary or forced) for years. They ain't gonna stop this lucrative source of income now.

[cloudhopper]

The police have been profiting from the cross-border trafficking of prostitutes (voluntary or forced) for years. They ain't gonna stop this lucrative source of income now.

Maybe that's the concern they're facing.

[Shah Jahan]

A nice set of twins that we know who works out of Hat Yai area (not sure exactly where) would make regualr runs in mini-vans in an out of maylaysia - always waved though on both sides. Last week they got caught over the border by special maylaysian police and had to pay 5k baht to come home. 2 days later they were back to doing their runs

so much for the crackdown.

[Tony Clifton]

All talk, not even enough drive for half-measures.

[Scott]

I often wonder how much of this actually 'forced'. I think it's a case of where, when caught, some folks say 'they made me do it.'