UK Pedophile Came to Cambodia to Teach in Schools

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Wednesday charged convicted British pedophile Richard Fruin, 36, with sexually abusing two brothers, aged 8 and 11, at a guesthouse in Phnom Penh, court officials said. … While the court has yet to decide Fruin’s fate, his case—and many similar to it—begs explanation for how a convicted child abuser could so easily travel to Cambodia and secure employment at a job involving children, thereby gaining access to potential victims. … In February, the British police’s Child Exploitation and Online Protection Center introduced the International Child Protection Certificate (ICPC) to Cambodia, a background check intended to “prevent U.K. sexual offenders travelling to other countries and gaining access to children through teaching or volunteering roles.” While schools, NGOs and orphanages may opt to make the ICPC mandatory, the applicants themselves must request the certificate from British police, at a cost of about $93. “I have not heard of any institutions who have actually applied for this yet, except for iCan [British International School], which hosted that [launch] event,” said Samleang Seila, country director at anti-pedophile NGO Action pour les Enfants (APLE), Wednesday. Mr. Seila said that unless the Ministry of Social Affairs makes background checks mandatory, employers will continue their lax hiring policies. …

Kuch Naren and Ben Woods
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/uk-pedophile-came-to-cambodia-to-teach-in-schools-46353/