March 16, 2015
Ambassador Patricia A. Butenis
Acting Director
State Department Office to Monitor and Combat
Trafficking in Persons
Department of State
Dear Ambassador Butenis:
I write to respectfully direct your attention to a country that has made remarkable
progress in confronting and deterring the crime of trafficking of children for commercial
sexual exploitation: Cambodia. A dozen years ago, Cambodia had one of the worst
records in the world for child prostitution. Pre-pubescent children were readily
available for exploitation and Cambodia was a magnet for foreign sex tourists, because
there was perceived and actual impunity towards this crime. Statistically reliable
quantitative data is not available from this earlier period, but various studies estimated
that children represented 15 to 20% of those in the sex industry. The Cambodian
Government’s own estimate was 30%.
But after more than a decade of concentrated effort by the Phnom Penh government, by
NGO’s, and by the State Department, there has been a transformation with regard to the
exploitation of children for commercial sex. Today, research and experience have shown
that it is virtually impossible to find children under the age of fifteen in the commercial
sex industry. It is also difficult to find minors aged 16-17. In short, authorities have
made unprecedented gains in victim rescue and restoration, perpetrator accountability,
and sustainable deterrence of the crime. A country that was once “ground zero” for
child exploitation is now a model for how to develop effective law enforcement,
prosecution, and victim restoration in the fight against trafficking. These
accomplishments should be recognized, studied, and replicated.
We at International Justice Mission urge you to lift up Cambodia as a successful model
of combatting child sex trafficking. Highlighting its progress will bring encouragement
and recognition to reformers within the Cambodian government. Cambodia’s success
also offers encouragement to other poor countries, showing that dramatic improvement
in child protection is possible even in fragile justice systems that have weaknesses and
infirmities. Finally, bringing attention to this model will also illustrate the extraordinary
impact of the TIP Report has had in encouraging reform.
The U.S. Role in Declining Victimization of Children
The State Department, including the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in
Persons (J/TIP) and notable Ambassadors to Phnom Penh have played a substantial
role in Cambodia’s extraordinary progress. When the trafficking of very young children
1
for commercial sexual exploitation came to the attention of the newly deployed
American Ambassador to Cambodia, The Honorable Charles Ray, in January 2003, he
raised the issue prominently with then-Interior Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Sar
Kheng. Ambassador Ray’s recommendations carried particular weight in light of the fact
that the 2002 State Department TIP Report had ranked Cambodia on Tier 3; a second
year of Tier 3 ranking would incur sanctions and a reduction of U.S. assistance to
Cambodia.
The Interior Ministry directed its anti-trafficking police—which, under prior leadership,
had been actively complicit in the commercial sexual exploitation of children—to
collaborate with International Justice Mission (IJM) to rescue young children from
brothels and apprehend perpetrators. Over the next several years, dozens of children
were rescued and restored and many perpetrators were apprehended, prosecuted, and
punished. The anti-trafficking police also requested and received training and
mentorship from IJM in order to increase their capacity, ethics, and effectiveness at
responding to TIP cases.
The State Department’s J/TIP Office played a significant role throughout this period.
The annual TIP Report reflected both Cambodia’s progress and setbacks. IJM can attest
from our own experience that the Cambodian authorities at the highest levels took these
reports seriously and on most occasions were extremely responsive to the criticisms
offered. Cambodian police often requested feedback and assistance from IJM on how to
improve their performance and meet JTIP’s expectations in order to raise Cambodia’s
standing in the TIP Report.
In 2008, Cambodia adopted the Law on the Suppression of Human Trafficking and
Sexual Exploitation (the “TIPSE Law”). The new law brought Cambodia largely into
alignment with international anti-trafficking standards but its implementation was
flawed. Various police forces seized on its passage as an opportunity to execute sweeps
and shakedowns throughout sex entertainment venues. The Cambodian military police,
in particular, reportedly engaged in significant human rights abuses against women in
the sex industry.
The J/TIP Office raised concerns about this negative development in its 2008 TIP
Report, downgrading Cambodia to Tier 3 status. The poor ranking bolstered reformers
within the police and quickly helped to marginalize military police and others who had
taken advantage of the 2008 act to prey on sex workers.
The U.S. Government also played a significant part in Cambodia’s transformation by
making grants to NGO’s in Cambodia for the rescue and restoration of trafficking
victims and for the training and professionalization of the Cambodian police, courts,
and social welfare office. As has been the case in many countries, the JTIP report’s
2
identification of weaknesses combined with targeted assistance to help governments
address them has been a highly effective model.
For example, in the early 2000’s, there were virtually no secure shelters offering
trauma-focused, comprehensive care to young children who had been removed by police
from sex venues. But thanks to grant-making from J/TIP, USAID and other donors to
excellent NGO’s working in Cambodia over the course of the last decade, capacity grew
to accommodate the particular needs of rescued children, and substantial expertise
developed among providers. The best practice models in the world today for short and
long-term care of child victims of commercial sexual exploitation were innovated and
developed in Cambodia. The J/TIP-funded World Hope assessment center in Phnom
Penh, for example, is a state-of-the-art model that we think should be replicated
elsewhere to accommodate the unique needs of child victims of trafficking.
Another example of the U.S. Government role in Cambodia’s transformation can be seen
in the development of police professionalism. Cambodia’s Anti-Human Trafficking and
Juvenile Protection Police (AHTJP) have now received over 10 years of professional
training, mentorship and support. IJM has trained and mentored over 500 of those
officers, and witnessed the clear progress seen in anti-trafficking police over the years:
improved capacity, increased cases moving through the justice system, consistent
numbers of victim rescues and criminal convictions, child friendly procedures
consistently utilized, growing public trust in the anti-trafficking police, and strong
government ownership over the fight against trafficking. Today, police are proactively,
independently and successfully pursuing and responding to sex trafficking cases.
Statistical Evidence of Transformation
In 2012, IJM and several partners conducted an intensive prevalence study in
Cambodia’s three largest cities – formerly the areas of highest availability of children for
sexual exploitation. We found that young minors age 15 and younger represented less
than 1% of those in prostitution. Older minors (ages 16-17) represented only 7.41% of
the total. Since then, IJM’s experienced undercover operatives and police partners have
investigated every single potential lead provided on child sexual exploitation throughout
Cambodia. We’ve found almost no children under the age of fifteen and a substantial
reduction in older minors (age 16-17) in entertainment venues.
As expected, prosecution and conviction of child sex trafficking cases have been lower in
recent years than they were earlier in the decade because there are actually fewer such
crimes. We would, nonetheless, direct your attention to the fact that Cambodian courts
invoke a number of penal code provisions for sexual and trafficking crimes. Thus, while
the 2014 TIP Report mentioned 18 anti-trafficking cases prosecuted under TIPSE
auspices (Cambodia’s anti-trafficking statute) it is our understanding that the
Cambodian government reported 132 convictions for trafficking and sexual exploitation
3
(which includes foreign pedophile exploitation cases, rape cases with more than one
victim, pornography abuse cases, etc.) under a variety of statutes. We encourage J/TIP
experts to acknowledge all appropriate prosecutions and convictions for traffickingrelated crimes so as to appropriately convey the magnitude of the Cambodian
Government’s response.
Another measure of Cambodia’s progress can be seen in the authentically committed,
experienced, knowledgeable leaders who are now moving into positions of higher
leadership and authority within the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Justice, the
Ministry of Women’s Affairs, the AHTJP police, and the Immigration Police. Similarly,
the First Instance Court system has more first-time judges, prosecutors and clerks who
are college educated, know the law, are employing child friendly practices, and want to
do a good, ethical job. Our AHTJP police contacts state that they now have prosecutors
in every province who proactively work with them and support their cases to move
forward. This was not the case two or three years ago.
An area of concern for Cambodian anti-trafficking stakeholders has been the absence of
undercover investigative authority for the AHTJP. The TIP Report has highlighted this
need in its recent reports, and the U.S. Embassy has raised it prominently with
Cambodian Government interlocutors. IJM’s Cambodia team follows the issue very
closely and provides technical expertise to the Cambodian government. We are
encouraged by Minister of Interior Sar Kheng’s strong support of undercover authority
for the AHTJP. This support was expressed in his directive to the Ministry of Justice to
offer a legal amendment and approval of procedural guidance in the first half of 2015.
The MOI knows that their police need this authority to process more covert trafficking
cases. They have the full support from prosecutors across the nation. While this is a
politically sensitive issue, the MOI and the MOJ have negotiated in good faith for
considerable time on granting this authority, and we are confident that agreement is
imminent.
Perhaps the most important indicator of progress in Cambodia is the sustainability of
anti-trafficking gains. After many years of collaboration with IJM on hundreds of
individual cases, the AHTJP police are now proactively conducting investigations,
rescues and apprehension of suspects entirely without IJM participation. Our AHTJP
police partners are now regularly calling the Department of Social Welfare (DoSAVY) for
social work assistance and ensuring that victims are referred to aftercare. This is the
goal of sustainability that we have been working towards, and we believe that our police
partners will work to achieve it.
Labor Trafficking
Of course, the TIP Report will also include information on Cambodia’s progress with
regard to labor trafficking. While this has not been IJM’s casework type, we are
4
nonetheless aware of accelerated activity by our Cambodian Government partners in
this area. Due to the prevalence decrease in sex trafficking, the vast majority of the
conversation now (in civil society and government) is how to address labor migration
and trafficking issues with the same success.
As you are aware, the majority of labor trafficking issues in Cambodia are cross-border,
with perpetrators of labor trafficking primarily in other ASEAN nations. As such,
investigations and legal cases must be done collaboratively with foreign governments.
Thus far, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia have been reluctant to respond
and partner well with Cambodia on cross-border issues, though discussions are just
beginning. In this regard, Cambodia’s MOU with Thailand last year to address crossborder labor trafficking issues is a big milestone.
Another sign of progress on cross-border trafficking can be seen in the response by the
Cambodian Government last year to the trafficking of Cambodian women to China for
marriage. The Phnom Penh Government responded quickly, focused the immigration
police on the issue, and has already had successful victim identification, rescue, arrests
and convictions of the local traffickers/recruiters. The number of convictions will
increase as more cases reach the courts. Authorities in Siem Reap are now also focusing
on marriage trafficking cases going out of their airports.
Political will to confront trafficking can also be seen in the government’s strengthening
of the National Committee for Counter Trafficking (led by Chu bun Eng, Secretary of
State for the Ministry of Interior) by giving it Royal Decree Power. (Royal Decree Power
includes the ability to enforce directives to the various ministries and by increasing its
staff and budget.) This will raise the profile of the government’s anti-trafficking
measures, increase its enforcement abilities, and ensure participation of all ministries in
the National Plan of Action for Counter Trafficking.
The National Committee released its 2014-2018 National Plan of Action, which is much
stronger than the preceding plan. The new plan was designed with full input from all
ministries and key NGO’s. It focuses heavily on labor trafficking, and addresses a full
spectrum of needs: cross-border cooperation on casework, regulatory development,
technical guidance for ministries, victim identification and protection, expanded police
and judicial official training at the sub-national level, and more.
For its part, civil society has formed a Labor Forum to design a more comprehensive,
strategic and complementary response to trafficking so as to support government
initiatives. Among the Forum’s goals is the creation of more effective community-based
victim identification, increased legal services in rural areas, vocational training and job
creation programs, and trauma care programs.
5
The Ministry of Interior moved the Immigration Police into its own department and
increased its budget and staff. The Immigration Police are focusing on key issues such
as keeping transnational crime groups out of Cambodia, identifying marriage trafficking
victims pre-departure, and promoting deportation of convicted foreign pedophiles. The
police have already been a strong support to IJM, APLE, LSCW, IOM and other leading
civil society agencies working on trafficking and exploitation issues, such as assisting
with the deportation of several foreign pedophiles, training civil society groups on
deportation policies at NGO-sponsored conferences, and following up on complaints of
foreign organized crime groups.
The Cambodian Government reported that in 2014 through government and civil
society prevention and education initiatives, that over 1 million Cambodians received
information about illegal, dangerous migration, trafficking and their rights.
Celebrating Collaboration and Success
In conclusion, IJM respectfully urges you to mark the transformation of Cambodia with
respect to trafficking both in public ways (such as advancing Cambodia to Tier 2 in the
2015 TIP Report) and in U.S. diplomacy. While the victory belongs to government
officials of good will in Cambodia, it is a success that the U.S. Government – and
especially the TIP Office – can take great pride in as well. Tough U.S. diplomacy and
hard-hitting TIP Reports helped make trafficking in Cambodia a priority for the
Cambodian Government and anti-trafficking assistance helped them develop best
practices in Southeast Asia. We urge you to highlight the power of U.S. diplomacy,
resources and engagement to help a fragile nation confront and overcome the worst
experience of young child commercial sexual exploitation we have seen anywhere in the
world.
Sincerely,
Sharon Cohn Wu
Senior Vice President for Justice System Transformation
6