800 Vietnamese return home from Cambodia in two days

Le Hong Vuong, head of the Tay Ninh border guard forces, said Thursday that the number of workers returning to Vietnam from Cambodia has risen dramatically of late.

Many of them worked in casinos in Cambodia and had no legal papers with them, he added.

The return of Vietnamese citizens from Cambodia was due to a widespread crackdown by Cambodian authorities on companies exploiting illegal, undocumented workers, Vuong said.

Border gates between Vietnam and Cambodia, situated in the southern provinces of Tay Ninh, Long An and An Giang, have been receiving large numbers of Vietnamese citizens returning, many of them after being rescued from casinos and other businesses. Most of them had been tricked to go to Cambodia as illegal workers.

On Monday the Xa Mat border gate in Tay Ninh received 171 people rescued by Cambodian authorities from gambling businesses. A fortnight earlier, over 80 Vietnamese had returned through the Moc Bai border gate.

It is estimated that since the beginning of this year, around 1500 Vietnamese citizens have managed to return home from illegal work facilities in Cambodia.