The rash of violent kidnappings that terrified Phnom Penh residents during last year’s post-election unrest appears to have tapered off in the first weeks of 1999, according to police officials.
Widespread fear persists, however, and while kidnapping for the purposes of ransom may have declined, abductions of young women and girls by organized prostitution rings continue, they said.
“Kidnapping is quite quiet now because police authorities have been paying more attention to security in the city,” said Yeng Marady, deputy director of national police. “The police are working hard and looking smart, but they have not enough experts and equipment to crack down fully. There is also too short a time for proper training. ”
Reasons for the downturn include improved methods of detection and a more stable political climate in which the police can operate, officials said.
Song Moritia, assistant director of penal police, said the crackdown actually began a year ago. But the effectiveness of it was hampered before the July 26 elections because police resources were stretched and kidnappers knew it. The crackdown resumed in response to public concerns during the September demonstrations against the government, he said.
Thirty-six kidnappers were arrested by Phnom Penh police in 1998, according to figures supplied by Song Moritia’s office. Two were Chinese and one a Japanese national. Three died in shootouts with police.
Kidnapping statistics from each province are not collated nationally, said Song Moritia. The exact numbers of kidnappings would be difficult to estimate in any case, as many families pay ransom without reporting the crime to police.
Yet fears of a resurgence, especially kidnappings by the Bong Thom, or “big brother,” youth gangs, aren’t going to go away.
A 9-year-old girl, Lan Chou, was abducted last month from Santhor Mok School before being drugged and murdered.
A teacher at Santhor Mok School said one reason Bong Thom gangs carry out kidnappings is the need to buy drugs. He also said the threat of reprisals between gangsters is great.
“Some gangsters have no money. Also, some gangsters smoke too much drugs. If they have no money for drugs they do this. They kidnap children from rich families,” said the teacher, who taught Lan Chou’s alleged abductor, Nuon Chansorya, before the teenager left school three years ago.
Song Moritia, whose men arrested the teenager, refused to comment on the case and said it was a matter for Kandal police.
As in the case of Lan Chou, kidnappers are frequently known to their victims.
Cambodian girls, particularly those from rural homes, continue to be lured or sold into prostitution rings by neighbors and relatives, authorities said.
Yim Po, executive director of the Cambodian Center for the Protection of Children’s Rights, said traffickers entice the girls away from their families with offers of jobs in the big city.
It is not known how much cooperation—if any—exists between prostitution rings and gangs that kidnap for ransom, but Yim Po pointed out that the Bong Thom enjoy the protection of the so-called strong men connected to the military who run brothels.
A municipal police source denied such connections exist but conceded that many kidnappings are carried out by government employees, either because they need the money to live or to fuel gambling or drug addictions.
“Some are government officers…some do it because of big desire; they want money to gamble or party,” said the source.
(Additional reporting by Kay Kimsong)
