Thirteen Filipina women convicted in Cambodia for attempting to become surrogate mothers under an illegal scheme have been granted royal pardons and returned to the Philippines, according an AFP report citing Department of Foreign Affairs.
The women, arrested in September alongside other foreign nationals, were sentenced in December to four years in prison for attempted cross-border human trafficking. They arrived safely in Manila early Sunday after receiving clemency from Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni.
The Cambodian court stated that there was strong evidence the women planned to have babies to sell for financial gain, categorizing the act as human trafficking. However, details about the unborn children’s status were not disclosed.
Cambodia outlawed commercial surrogacy in 2016, following Thailand’s earlier ban, but the practice persists due to high demand, particularly from Chinese couples. Surrogacy agents reportedly offer Cambodian women up to $100,000 to carry children for clients, despite the legal risks.
