The South Korean government has designated a Philippine woman and a Vietnamese woman as victims of human trafficking, enabling them to receive support services such as medical care and job assistance. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced this recognition on Tuesday, highlighting that both women suffered from sexual and labor exploitation. The Philippine national entered South Korea in October 2024 with hopes of working as a singer but was forced into selling alcohol and prostitution without receiving wages. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese victim enrolled in a vocational school in June 2023, which was later found to offer inadequate training, and she also did not receive wages during her training. With these two new designations, the total number of trafficking victims recognized in South Korea this year has reached 15, contributing to a cumulative total of 72 victims since 2023, including 33 men and 39 women. The majority of these cases involve labor exploitation, with 51 cases reported, while 21 involved sexual exploitation.