Cambodia blasts label of 'scam town'

Cambodian Minister of Information Neth Pheaktra defended Sihanoukville against Western media labeling it as a "scam town", highlighting humanitarian assistance after a residential cruise ship was stranded in the port town last month due to fuel costs and financial distress.

In a letter to the Financial Times posted on his Facebook page on Saturday, Pheaktra said its report unfairly stigmatized the southwestern Cambodian city and overlooked the assistance Cambodia provided to passengers and crew after the United States-based cruise company Villa Vie Residences' financial failure.

"Rather than acknowledging this hospitality, the article branded the city a 'scam town'," said Pheaktra, noting officials and locals actively assisted passengers by swiftly issuing tourist visas, securing accommodation, facilitating onward travel, and providing free guides.

After departing Belfast, Northern Ireland, in October 2024, Villa Vie's year-round residential cruise ship, the Odyssey, suspended operations on Oct 27 in Sihanoukville, Cambodia, blaming soaring fuel costs amid the US and Israel's conflict with Iran.

Some 200 long-term residents, who had paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to board the cruise, were forced to disembark. According to the website of Florida-based Villa Vie Residences, the vessel's owner, the global voyage was set to last 3.5 years and cover 147 countries.

Some international media, including the Financial Times, described affected passengers as "stranded" in a "scam town".

Pheaktra said Cambodia has been committed to addressing the global challenge of online scams through cross-border cooperation.

Govt action

Since July 2025, the country has shut down 86 large-scale online scam compounds nationwide and placed them under government control.

"It is unfair to define an entire city by the actions of criminals we are actively pursuing, while overlooking the kindness its citizens showed to stranded travelers," he said.

Ministry of Tourism's Secretary of State and Spokesman Top Sopheak said that about 98 passengers remained in different parts of Cambodia as of Wednesday, with others having returned home or left for other destinations.

The ministry also said it welcomes passengers remaining in Cambodia to continue exploring the country, and it has set up a coordination team to help those in need during their stay, according to Khmer Times.

One ship resident, Randy Cassingham, who was interviewed by the Financial Times for its story, also refuted Sihanoukville's "scam town" label in a blog on his website.

"Even if the reports are true … the only thing we have seen from the Cambodians is hospitality, politeness, care, and concern," Cassingham wrote, noting that he and his wife were neither stranded nor afraid.

He also praised the local hospitality and the help he had received from the Cambodian government, including van transportation to Phnom Penh.

Responding to criticism over the government's move to help the disembarked passengers due to security and other concerns, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet emphasized on Thursday that the decision was made out of humanitarian responsibility.

"We may not be a wealthy nation, but when others face hardship, we step in to help and find solutions," Hun Manet said.

The ship departed Cambodia on Wednesday, headed for Singapore with no passengers and around 50 crew members.

It arrived in Singapore on Sunday and is currently impounded under a court order, according to Singapore's Chinese news website 8world.