Trafficking is a huge issue, without question. I wrote essays about it in uni, and have an atlas of trafficking in Southeast Asia somewhere around the house, gotta try n find that actually, and maybe I can pull some more data for you guys. I just don't think that xenophobia and discrimination is an appropriate or effective response, nor do I believe that trafficking is limited to those who are seeking to leave Cambodia or dealing with foreigners in whatever way. So it just makes these people above look hypocritical and incompetent. In my opinion, trafficking should be addressed by dealing with root issues like corruption and lack of opportunity/education, the establishment of functional rule of law etc. Because this is how traffickers get away with their crimes. Apart from these admittedly hard to deal with problems, I completely agree that there should be measures, such as interviews and background checks to establish whether or not a relationship is genuine.

phuketrichard wrote: ↑Sun Nov 22, 2020 7:52 am

The whole $2500 law shits me as well.

Wasn't that cancelled awhile ago?

No, the age restriction was removed, not the minimum monthly income requirement. But, there is the option for the Cambodian woman to sign a waiver exempting her future husband from that requirement.

daeum_tnaot wrote: ↑Sun Nov 22, 2020 12:23 pm I still think the solution to the marriage problem is for people to get married overseas to avoid the corruption here, and then the Cambodian government has some method to determine whether it's a legitimate marriage that they will recognize. Refusing to recognize marriages conducted overseas is wrong, in my view.

There is a pathway to having marriages abroad recognised by Cambodia, first point of call is the Dept. of Identification, then MoFAIC, then MoI....if approved then a letter of authorisation is issued so that the couple can apply for their Cambodian marriage certificate from the Cambodian partners registered Sangkat.

They did put a stop to recognising marriages abroad for several years, but they have now again started allowing it...they change the rules as often as backpackers shower

phuketrichard wrote: ↑Sun Nov 22, 2020 2:21 pm And what, pray tell would that all cost? Seems like just more regulations to fuck ya and get ur $$

just asking, but what are the benefits to have an overseas marriage recognized in Cambodia?
you still need obtain a 1 year extension, no long term marriage visa/extension
you still need a wp to work
you still cant inherit or own land

I think PSD Kiwi mentioned a while back that if you are legally married then property obtained during the period of the marriage is considered to be marital property. So for example, if you and your partner buy property then it is automatically recognized as joint property. He also said when they wanted to sell land the authorities called both husband and wife to determine that they wanted to sell.

I thought I also heard recently there is some kind of visa for spouses. In addition to a shortened path to citizenship.

PSD-Kiwi wrote: ↑Sun Nov 22, 2020 2:07 pm

daeum_tnaot wrote: ↑Sun Nov 22, 2020 12:23 pm I still think the solution to the marriage problem is for people to get married overseas to avoid the corruption here, and then the Cambodian government has some method to determine whether it's a legitimate marriage that they will recognize. Refusing to recognize marriages conducted overseas is wrong, in my view.

There is a pathway to having marriages abroad recognised by Cambodia, first point of call is the Dept. of Identification, then MoFAIC, then MoI....if approved then a letter of authorisation is issued so that the couple can apply for their Cambodian marriage certificate from the Cambodian partners registered Sangkat.

They did put a stop to recognising marriages abroad for several years, but they have now again started allowing it...they change the rules as often as backpackers shower

That's good to hear! Maybe my partner and I will try it.

phuketrichard wrote: ↑Sun Nov 22, 2020 2:21 pm And what, pray tell would that all cost? Seems like just more regulations to fuck ya and get ur $$

just asking, but what are the benefits to have an overseas marriage recognized in Cambodia?
you still need obtain a 1 year extension, no long term marriage visa/extension
you still need a wp to work
you still cant inherit or own land

Costs sweet fuck all, but a lot of running around and ensuring documentation is in order

There's not a whole lot of benefits unless you plan on living permanently/long term in Cambodia, investing in property in Cambodia, raising family in Cambodia, etc. For someone of your age there's probably SFA benefits. Just off the top of my head, below are some of the benefits;

- If not working in Cambodia and not eligible for an ER EOS, you can obtain an EB EOS based on marriage
- The DoI are currently reviewing Immigration policies, a marriage/family Visa or EOS category is being discussed
- Pathway to citizenship, which has it's own benefits
- Entitled to all marital rights according to the Law on Marriage & Family, including property ownership. If you purchase Hard-Titled property when legally married the foreigners name is included on the Hard-Title and the property cannot be sold without authorisation from both husband and wife.
- You can inherit property - however, as the constitution dictates foreigners cannot own property, you have 3 months to sell or transfer the property. If you sell, the proceeds from the sale are yours, unless dictated otherwise in your wife's will (if she has one).
- As the legal next-of-kin, the husband/wife are able to authorise medical procedures in the event the husband/wife is unable to make decisions for themselves.

Is that what the anti-trafficking unit gave you when you bribed them? A life-long ticket to your wife's happiness? Nice! Now you can relax, get a mistress, and become an alcoholic.

We did a saiun here, and we're very happy with that. We won't be running around doing any of that nonsense. It would only embarrass my wife as we already got married in Australia and she knows how ridiculous and discriminatory the whole system over here is in comparison.

newkidontheblock wrote: ↑Sun Nov 22, 2020 10:01 pm

daeum_tnaot wrote:In some cases with Cambodians, it seems that they themselves are somehow bound to the traffickers, and feel little motivation to leave, like Stockholm Syndrome, or some kind of sense of owing the traffickers. There have been cases like this with the donut shops in the US, I believe.

The elephant in the room is family pressure and the social system. There is an obligation to provide. Some get trafficked. Most just work in (considered by western standards) poor working and living conditions. To scrape money and send it back home. Just like the province girls who come to Phnom Penh for factory work and end up doing other kinds of work. The pressure to provide is huge and unrelenting.

Using the anti-trafficking unit more extensively to stop human trafficking is a bad idea based on my one and only experience as part of the marriage certificate process. Asked to give small bribes to the individual senior leadership ($5 and $10 kind). Initial application was rejected because the small man on the totem pole wasn’t given a big enough bribe. Basically he told missus I was a sex trafficker, application rejected. Missus called the fixer, and we were told to take a long lunch. When we came back, the squeaky wheel was suitably beaten into submission and gave the ministry approval. But still refused to issue the final permission.

The biggest reason for going through the whole process and marrying in Cambodia? To make your better half happy for her entire life. Telling her she’s not worth the effort is ... well ... I am happy I did it.

I would think that your wife would be happy enough with a marriage in another country?

I also was under the impression that you were applying for a fiance visa, not a spousal visa. So you got married in Cambodia and got the spousal visa to the US?