Cambodia’s General Department of Immigration has been making big moves lately. In just ten short days, from September 10 to 20, authorities deported 681 foreign nationals hailing from 31 countries and regions. A closer look at the numbers shows that Chinese citizens made up the largest group.
According to local police, this wasn't a crowd making an honest living. Many were swept up for running online scams, overstaying their visas to live here illegally, or even being linked to kidnapping and extortion rings. Once caught, they were packed up and put straight on flights out of the country.
Over the past few days, you could still catch the occasional police car blasting its siren down the street. Sitting at a roadside stall in the evening over a glass of iced coffee, with the familiar puff of motorbike exhaust drifting by, this crackdown is what everyone is talking about. Local vendors and small business owners say clearing out these trouble-makers gives the neighborhood some peace and quiet—and makes the late-night ride home on a moto feel a whole lot safer.
