'They don't realize it's not marriage. It's slavery': What a B.C. man is doing to free Cambodians trapped by traffickers

Phnom Penh, Cambodia -

This is the fourth story in Hidden in Plain Sight: an in-depth series exploring human trafficking and its connection to British Columbia. Read Part 1 here, Part 2 here and Part 3 here.

Warning: The contents may be disturbing to some readers

It’s something we don’t see in B.C. anymore – a red-light district.

But it exists in Cambodia’s capital of Phnom Penh.

“This is one of many streets where young women come down to the big city to try and help their poor families. They’re desperate to earn some money to send back to mom and dad,” explained Brian McConaghy, the founding director of Ratanak International, as we rode through the area in a tuktuk.

“They get off the bus looking for nanny jobs or factory jobs, and they end up spun around in places like this almost instantly,” he said, adding that some of the those working on this street are as young as 14.

McConaghy began his work in Cambodia decades ago, helping the RCMP on investigations to jail to sex predators from B.C. abusing children overseas. Later, his organization, supported by Canadians, built a secure centre in Phnom Penh, where they protect and support those who have been trafficked internationally.

While CTV News was at the centre, one of the survivors in Ratanak’s care turned out to be just 13.

“We will assess them,” said Solyna Kim, a client support officer at Ratanak.

“What do they need? And we also screen them to make sure they are OK. Because some of them are not OK … They are traumatized.”

Pattya Kuch, one of Ratanak’s client support officers, said she can see the change in survivors as they progress through Ratanak’s programs.

“When they first come back from China, they look unhappy, (but) … living with us, they start smiling, talking and sharing,” she said.

McConaghy said victims are often lured with promises of work or an arranged marriage.

“They don’t realize it’s not marriage. It’s slavery,” he said.

But the young women and teens are afraid to leave, afraid of what the trafficker, often referred to as a “broker,” might do.

“If the broker catches her … They will use the violence or they will kill them, so that’s (how they) … make them feel really scared,” said Soklan Aor, a counsellor with Ratanak.

Ratanak International operates a secure centre for victims of trafficking in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. (CTV News)

McConaghy said survivors his organization has helped have sometimes been trafficked to Malaysia, but most often to China.

“Because of the one child policy and gender preference of the Chinese government for many decades … China is currently 35 million females short. That’s 35 million men in China with no prospects of girlfriends or wives. That is a recipe for massive human trafficking,” he said.

In a statement to CTV News, the Chinese embassy in Ottawa said the number of trafficking cases involving women and children has dropped significantly over the past decade.

“The Chinese government has always taken a high-pressure stance against the crime of abducting and trafficking women and children and has continued to improve the overall program of protecting the rights and interests of women and children at the national level,” the statement reads.

It also states that “China has continued to strengthen international co-operation with other countries and regions in combating human trafficking.”

Meanwhile, Cambodia has been criticized for not doing enough to help prevent trafficking, but McConaghy said there has been progress.

“The Cambodian government is working very hard on this. Are they doing enough? Do any of us do enough? There’s always a need to do more,” he explained.

CTV News was with McConaghy in Phnom Penh the night workers from Ratanak responded to a call from social services about a flight coming from China with Cambodian trafficking victims on board.

“We’re heading out to the airport to pick up five young women and girls, two of them are minors,” explained McConaghy as we followed in a vehicle behind the Ratanak van.

“All of them have been enslaved. We don’t know how long,” he said.

Once at the airport, the staff head inside to prepare for the arrival of the aircraft.

“One of the things I love about this process is it almost feels clandestine because it’s happening right in front of people, but nobody recognizes what’s going on,” McConaghy said.

He explains that the women and underage girls they are waiting for would have had their identification taken away by traffickers and likely destroyed. Special documentation was arranged to allow them to return to safety.

It doesn’t take long before the trafficking survivors emerge with Ratanak workers.

“To witness them, it’s electrifying,” said McConaghy.

“To see them coming out, it’s better than any movie because it’s real. These are slaves set free.”

We watch as the van with the survivors arrives back at the Ratanak centre, where they will begin the often-long journey to healing.

But McConaghy said now they are safe.

And they are free.

This project was made possible with funding provided by the Lieutenant Governor’s B.C. Journalism Fellowship in partnership with Government House Foundation and the Jack Webster Foundation.