[Asia Report] Why Korea Is Powerless in the Face of the Cambodia Kidnapping Incident

Korean Law Enforcement and Diplomacy Powerless Abroad
In Cambodia, Money and Power Stand Above the Law
AI Advances Deepen Poverty and Crime
Advanced Nations: Both Victims and Structural Accomplices

The shockwave caused by the abduction of a Korean national at a scam compound in Cambodia is significant. Not only have those who planned trips to Cambodia begun to cancel in droves, but the ripple effect of anxiety and fear is spreading to neighboring countries such as Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar. Over the past decade, South Korea has spun countless optimistic narratives about the Mekong region, which was the top partner for the "New Southern Policy" during the Moon Jae-in administration. However, all those dazzling prospects for the future have now completely collapsed. Even the author and colleagues, who have long studied Southeast Asia, are now asking themselves, "Have we been too optimistic about this region?"

In fact, it is not unusual for Koreans to become victims of crimes overseas. However, there is a particular reason why this incident is being received as something "special." For the first time, the public is collectively experiencing the realization that Korea's national security capabilities can mean nothing once outside its borders.

The Korean police are extremely powerful. Crime is solved in Korea through "connecting the data"-by tracing CCTV footage, analyzing credit card transaction records, and reviewing real-name based telecommunications logs. However, the moment a Korean is kidnapped and detained in Cambodia and forced into scam labor, all of these technologies become powerless. The reason is simple: the order and environment in which crime operates are fundamentally different.

The Wall of "Sovereignty"

The power of the Korean police is only valid within the territory of Korea. Cambodia is a sovereign foreign country, and without the cooperation of local police, Korean officers cannot access CCTV footage, enter crime scenes, or apprehend suspects. Korean police can only act if Cambodian police cooperate. The common sense expectation of international cooperation completely breaks down, because Cambodian law enforcement operates not in the language of "law" as in Korea, but in the language of "power."

South Korea has provided massive Official Development Assistance (ODA) to Cambodia: 178.9 billion won in 2022, 180.5 billion won in 2023, 217.8 billion won in 2024, and 435.3 billion won in 2025. This is a 2.4-fold increase in just three years-the steepest rise among the 27 ODA priority partner countries designated by Korea. Unfortunately, these figures become meaningless in the face of criminal investigations. This is because the loyalty of local Cambodian police organizations is not to the law or national interest, but to higher powers, regional factions, or money. They do not follow the "law"; they follow the violence of those with money.

Just because Korea provides hundreds of billions of won in ODA does not mean Cambodian authorities will prioritize Korea's requests. Jang Jisoon, a special professor at Sangmyung University who has conducted ODA projects in Cambodia for seven years, points out, "The loyalty of Cambodian police is not to the law or national interest, but to local power brokers who possess money and influence." This is not just criticism; it reflects the reality that local police function as intermediaries brokering criminal interests, and in some cases, parts of the state apparatus become criminal organizations themselves.

The problem is even more serious. Scam complexes at Cambodia's borders are not spaces monopolized by "state authority." As in northern Shan State in Myanmar and the Golden Triangle border areas of Thailand and Laos, a power ecosystem exists, dominated by private armed groups, warlords, and corrupt officials. In this world, law is selective, and state power sometimes acts as a broker for criminal interests. The fact that even high-ranking Korean officials visit does not mean the issue will be easily resolved.

An Era Where Poverty Becomes Violence

The era when we viewed the Global South solely as a promising investment destination has come to an end. The poverty of the Global South is no longer a "risk confined within the region." It is now turning into a threat that, via cyberspace, attacks the safety of citizens in advanced countries. The poverty of the Third World has now mutated into a new security threat: "violence that crosses borders."

This phenomenon is likely to intensify in the future. The reason is that global capital is focusing even more on "artificial intelligence, semiconductors, and advanced technology." As these cutting-edge sectors become more concentrated, the density of poverty and violence grows on the other side. Scam compounds in northern Cambodia, cyber gambling zones on the Laos border, crypto-asset laundering platforms in Myanmar's warlord regions-all of these have become inescapable underground industries.

This is not because the Korean administration is incompetent. Without our realizing it, technology and poverty have created a vicious cycle that reinforces both. Crimes exploiting data are sprouting in the poorest regions, mobilizing violence in the form of gambling, drugs, and slave labor to attack citizens of advanced countries-a new world forged by the age of AI. This is the harsh reality: we are victims, yet there is no reason for us to be stingy about ODA to the Third World.

Jung Hojae, Secretary General of the Asia Vision Forum