Phnom penh: Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet voiced "deep regret" over the death of a South Korean national involved in an illegal online job scam in Cambodia. The Prime Minister made this announcement during a meeting with a South Korean government response team, led by Second Vice Foreign Minister Kim Ji-na, who visited Phnom Penh to address the rising threat of organized crime impacting South Koreans in the Southeast Asian country.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Hun Manet expressed his condolences for the victim's death and assured efforts to apprehend the suspects involved and enhance the safety of South Koreans in Cambodia. The college student, in his 20s, was found dead in southern Cambodia in August, allegedly after being tortured by an online scam ring. This incident has incited public outrage in South Korea, prompting the South Korean government to take comprehensive measures to tackle the issue.
The Cambodian Prime Minister pledged to intensify government efforts to combat online scams, expressing a desire for collaboration with South Korea. Hun leads Cambodia's Commission for Combatting Online Scams (CCOS), a task force established to prevent and suppress such fraudulent activities.
Vice Foreign Minister Kim Ji-na conveyed "strong regret" over the growing number of online job scams targeting South Koreans in Cambodia. She urged for active cooperation and measures from Cambodian authorities to address the crime effectively. Kim also requested assistance for the repatriation of approximately 60 South Koreans detained in Cambodia due to their alleged involvement in the scams and for the swift return of the deceased victim's body.
Kim explained to Hun that South Korea's recent elevation of the travel alert for Cambodia was a necessary response to the current crisis. She indicated that Seoul would consider lowering the alert as the situation improves. Hun, however, expressed concern over the travel warning's "negative impact" on Cambodia's investment and tourism sector.
The South Korean government has announced a travel ban for Cambodia's Bokor Mountain region in Kampot Province, and the cities of Bavet and Poipet, and raised the travel alert urging its citizens in Sihanoukville Province, an online scam hotspot, to leave the area.
Kim addressed Hun's concerns about Cambodia's portrayal in Korean media, suggesting that closer coordination between the two countries could improve South Korea's public perception of Cambodia following the job scam crisis. She also proposed exploring development cooperation projects to enhance Cambodia's public security capabilities.
Before meeting with Hun, Kim met with Chhay Sinarith, the secretary-general of the CCOS, to discuss cooperation strategies for protecting South Korean nationals in Cambodia and the potential establishment of a bilateral task force on scam crime responses. The Korean joint response team also inspected an online scam complex in the Takeo region, south of Phnom Penh, in collaboration with Cambodian authorities.