A collaborative effort by the Thai government and ethnic armed factions has led to the release of over 250 foreign workers from Myanmar's notorious telecom scam centers. These individuals were lured into fraudulent operations under false pretenses, facing severe exploitation and abuse.
Over 250 Foreign Workers Rescued from Scam Centers in Myanmar
Over 250 Foreign Workers Rescued from Scam Centers in Myanmar
Ethnic armed groups in Myanmar release victims of telecom fraud operations, prompting urgent assessments for human trafficking.
More than 250 foreign workers from 20 different nationalities were freed from telecom fraud centers in Myanmar's Karen State, with the assistance of an ethnic armed group. The rescued individuals, primarily from African and Asian countries, have now been brought to Thailand, where they are undergoing evaluations to determine if they were victims of human trafficking. This development follows a meeting between Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and Chinese President Xi Jinping, during which a commitment was made to dismantle these scam centers proliferating along the Thai-Myanmar border.
The Thai government has implemented measures to cut off power and fuel supplies from Thai territory to undercut the operations of these scam centers, as well as tightening banking and visa regulations to prevent scam operators from using Thailand as a transit point for money and labor trafficking. These actions have been advocated by opposition MPs in Thailand for two years.
Foreign workers are often enticed to these centers with promises of lucrative salaries, or they may be misled into believing they would be working in Thailand instead of Myanmar. Scammers typically seek individuals who can communicate in the languages of their cyber-fraud targets, especially English and Chinese. The workers are coerced into committing online crimes, which range from love scams known as "pig butchering" to crypto fraud and money laundering. While some may willingly engage in the deceitful activities, others face brutal coercion, with some enduring torture and ransoms being necessary for release.
The foreign workers were released by the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA), one of the multiple armed factions controlling parts of Karen State. These groups have been criticized for permitting the scam operations to thrive while tolerating the trafficking and abuse of victims. The Myanmar government has struggled to assert authority over much of Karen State since its independence in 1948.
In a related development, Thai authorities have moved to lay charges against three commanders from another faction, the Karen National Army, including a notorious figure, Saw Chit Thu. This individual had brokered a deal in 2017 with a Chinese firm for the construction of Shwe Kokko, a city believed to be substantially financed through scams. While the company that developed Shwe Kokko claims that scams have been eradicated, local reports suggest that fraudulent activities remain prevalent. However, under pressure from Thailand and China, both Saw Chit Thu and the DKBA have vowed to expel scam operations from their respective areas.
The recent handover of the 260 workers, which included 221 men and 39 women from countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya, and the Philippines, demonstrates ongoing efforts to combat human trafficking and exploitation in the region amid a complex backdrop of organized crime and local insurgency.
