Thai jobs serve as siren song
Every day they come in the thousands and crowd under a blazing sun for hours, awaiting a moment that costs them more than two full months’ salary – a passport. And where are they going? “Thailand,” 21-year-old Sem Pheaktra said, squinting under a harsh mid-morning sun. He, and five other young men recruited by the Khemara company were waiting in a thousand-strong crowd to have their photo taken at the new passport office on Phnom Penh’s Mao Tse Toung Boulevard. “I am going to work in Thailand through [a recruiter],” the Kratie province native said. “I don’t need to pay for the passport, the company just cuts back my salary to pay for it.”… Last week, Prime Minister Hun Sen called for Cambodians to take up opportunities in booming agriculture and construction industries in the Kingdom. …
