13 PINAYS JAILED IN CAMBODIA FOR VIOLATING SURROGACY BAN

THE Philippine Embassy in Phnom Penh confirmed that 13 Filipino women were meted a two-year sentence for violating the surrogacy ban in Cambodia.

The Embassy said the 13 Pinays have been detained since September 23 at a designated medical facility in Cambodia.

The 13 were among the 24 foreign women detained by the Cambodian police in Kandal province in September and charged with attempted cross-border human trafficking.

The Filipinas were tried by a Cambodian court on November 28 to 29 for their participation in a surrogacy scheme and were found guilty of violating Cambodia’s 2008 Law on the Suppression of Human Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation by the Kandal Provincial Court on December 2.

The court said it had strong evidence showing that the 13 “have the intention… to have babies to sell to a third person in exchange for money, which is an act of human trafficking”.

Violation of the ban on surrogacy is considered a felony in Cambodia.  The Embassy said the law carries a maximum penalty of 15 to 20 years.

“For attempting to sell a person for cross-border transfer, the 13 Filipinos were meted a sentence of four years, which was reduced to two years due to mitigating circumstances vigorously argued by counsels appointed by the Embassy to pursue the best possible outcome within the framework of Cambodian law,” the Embassy said.

The Embassy added that the Philippine government will continue to provide appropriate and necessary support, including legal and consular assistance, to the 13 Filipinos for the duration of their stay in Cambodia.

Meanwhile, Filipinos were reminded that Cambodia strictly prohibits commercial surrogacy, and traveling to Cambodia for surrogacy arrangements could result in imprisonment.