Seoul, Oct 14 South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Tuesday called for relevant ministries to use "all available resources" to help Korean nationals kidnapped in Cambodia over job scams return home, following the torture and death of a college student that shocked the nation.
Lee made the call during a Cabinet meeting as the reported kidnappings of Korean nationals jumped this year over job scams and the torture death of the college student that prompted Foreign Minister Cho Hyun to summon Cambodia's ambassador.
"Related ministries should accelerate the establishment of a regular communication channel between the law enforcement authorities of the two countries through consultations with the Cambodian government," Lee said, adding that Korean nationals kidnapped in Cambodia should be promptly found and sent home.
Addressing rising safety concerns of Koreans in Cambodia, Lee urged the government to "implement all available resources to promptly, accurately and decisively respond to this problem."
To prevent similar incidents, he stressed the need to promptly strengthen travel restrictions to areas where the risk of crimes is high.
On Friday, the foreign ministry upgraded its Level 2 travel advisory for the capital of Phnom Penh to a special travel advisory, which has been in place in the southern regions and border regions with Vietnam.
Lee also called on the government to ensure sufficient staffing and budget allocations for embassies abroad so they can provide timely assistance to Koreans in need, Yonhap news agency reported.
Seoul has been in consultations with Phnom Penh to increase the number of police officers at the South Korean Embassy -- which currently consists of one official and two assistants -- and to establish a "Korean Desk" within the Cambodian national police, a team dedicated to handling cases involving Koreans.
According to official data, crimes against South Koreans in Cambodia rose sharply from 81 cases in 2022 to 134 in 2023 and 348 last year. In the first half of this year, the number was 303.
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