A Cambodian court has sentenced 13 pregnant Filipino women to four years in prison for acting as surrogates, intensifying its crackdown on the outlawed practice of commercial surrogacy.
The 13 women, arrested in September alongside 11 others, were charged with attempted cross-border human trafficking. The Kandal provincial court ruled on Monday that they had intended “to have babies to sell to a third person in exchange for money,” constituting human trafficking.
While their sentences include two years of suspended imprisonment, the fate of their unborn children remains unclear, according to court documents.
Seven additional Filipino women and four Vietnamese women detained in the raid were deported. Meanwhile, a Cambodian woman who provided meals for the surrogates was sentenced to two months and one day in prison for her involvement.
Cambodia banned commercial surrogacy in 2016 following Thailand’s similar prohibition. Despite the ban, demand for surrogacy remains high, particularly from Chinese couples, with agents reportedly charging between $40,000 and $100,000 for their services.
Authorities have taken increasingly stringent measures to curb the practice. In 2018, an Australian nurse managing a surrogacy clinic in Cambodia was jailed, and dozens of Cambodian women involved in surrogacy for Chinese clients have faced arrests.
Cambodia’s actions highlight the ethical and legal challenges of regulating surrogacy in countries where enforcement mechanisms remain fragile, even as demand for such services surges globally.
