A victim spoke to the media on February 3.
PHOTO: Pavena Foundation for Children and Women
The Bangkok Post reported on February 3 that three Thai women had just been rescued after being tricked by a human egg smuggling ring run by a Chinese criminal group in Georgia.
The effort to rescue the victims stemmed from information provided by Ms. Pavena Hongsakula, founder of the Pavena Foundation for Children and Women (Thailand).
Ms. Pavena learned about the incident from another female victim, who was released and returned to Thailand in September 2024, after paying about 70,000 baht (more than 52 million VND) to the gang. This unnamed victim said that there were other Thai women locked up in the "human egg farm" because they could not pay the criminal group.
Thai foreign police coordinated with the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) to help bring the three women back to Thailand on January 30. Police did not publicly identify the victims.
Speaking to the media online on February 3, one victim said she saw an advertisement on Facebook promising an income of 400,000-600,000 baht. After contacting the company, she learned that the job was to act as a surrogate mother for infertile couples in Georgia. She was paid for passport and travel expenses.
She and 10 others were taken to Georgia in August 2023 by a Thai woman suspected of being a member of the gang. Upon arrival, they were taken to an area with four large houses and at least 100 Thai women living there.
The area is run by a Chinese gang and no infertile couples use surrogates. Instead, the women are forced to take hormones to stimulate their ovaries. Every month, they are anesthetized to have their eggs removed, and some are not paid at all.
According to Ms Pavena, the human eggs were then smuggled to other countries for use in in vitro fertilization (IVF). Thai police said the investigation was still ongoing and there may be other victims rescued.
Figures from the Pavena Foundation for Children and Women show that 257 Thai citizens fell victim to human trafficking last year, of whom 53 were found within the country and 204 overseas. The foundation helped rescue 152 of them.
Georgia currently has no specific regulations on surrogacy. Companies operating in the country advertise their services as legal. The Georgian government says it is in the process of introducing legislation to ban the practice. China’s response is unclear.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/giai-cuu-nhom-phu-nu-thai-lan-trong-trang-trai-trung-nguoi-o-georgia-185250203215041229.htm
Comment (0)