Sihanoukville

The city was named in honor of the former king Norodom Sihanouk and as of 2008 had a population of around 89,800 and approximately 66,700 in its urban center. It encompasses the greater part of six communes (Sangkats) in Sihanoukville Province. It has evolved parallel to the construction of the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port, which commenced in 1955, as the country's gateway to direct and unrestricted international sea trade. Cambodia's only deep-water port, it includes an oil terminal and a transport logistics facility. The city has grown into Cambodia's main centre for coastal tourism and gambling, but it has also gained notoriety as a base for organized crime, including human trafficking, scams (particularly jobs, romance and pig butchering scams), among other illicit activities.