Human Trafficking in SE Asia
Author: wcc-admin
Teng* grew up in an underdeveloped community in Cambodia with limited resources.
A man traveling through the town offered Teng an opportunity for a better life, including free accommodation, a scholarship to attend school, and money sent home to her parents.
Shortly after beginning school, Teng was sexually abused and exploited by the man. He threatened to withdraw her from school and stop sending her family financial support if she told anyone. The abuse continued for years. Until one day, someone noticed signs of exploitation and reported it to the local authorities.
Teng was interviewed at our A21 Child Advocacy Center in Cambodia, where she disclosed her abuse and the abuse of others. Teng’s brave testimony led to the arrest of her perpetrator for child trafficking.
*survivor name has been changed for their protection
Human Trafficking in SE Asia
The Asia and Pacific regions have the highest number of victims across all forms of modern slavery, accounting for an estimated 73% of the world’s victims of forced sexual exploitation and 64% of the world’s victims of forced labor exploitation.*
This year marks our 10th year of working in Southeast Asia. We have four regional locations, including 2 in Thailand and 2 in Cambodia. While A21’s work within Asia has expanded, our mission to abolish human trafficking remains the same.
Many cases we have encountered have involved child victims. This led to the launch of A21’s first Child Advocacy Center (CAC) in Thailand in 2017—a safe place for victims to receive holistic aftercare, ensuring a child-friendly approach to collecting testimonies for court.
Our team quickly recognized that poverty along Cambodia and Thailand’s border increased the risk of trafficking in this area. So, in 2019, we launched our first office in Cambodia to raise awareness of human trafficking to reduce vulnerability and prevent exploitation. Soon after, we opened another CAC in Siem Reap to assist and support child victims.
Most recently, we launched a child-focused Freedom Center to provide holistic aftercare to young victims and partnered with Hagar International to provide foster care services for child survivors in Cambodia.
Our team has identified and assisted hundreds of survivors across SE Asia. Childhoods have been restored, families have been reunited, and many survivors have obtained education for the first time.
We’re grateful to be part of the incredible work happening in this region. Freedom will prevail, and we can’t wait to celebrate that day with you.
But our work is not done here.