Cambodia’s trafficked brides: The escalating phenomenon of forced marriage in China

The number of women travelling from Cambodia to China for forced or arranged marriages has surged since 2016 and experienced a further spike since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many Cambodian women in arranged marriages with Chinese men, whether originally consensual or not, report finding themselves in remote areas and abusive contexts. This paper has been designed and implemented in partnership with Child Helpline Cambodia (CHC), a free service for youth and children in Cambodia which receives trafficking reports from callers. It explores the significant and escalating phenomenon of trafficking of Cambodian women and girls to China for marriage. It investigates the modus operandi of networks transporting Cambodian women and girls to China for forced and arranged marriages, including the routes typically travelled, common and changing profiles of women and girls targeted, and the recruitment process.