Myanmar Junta Says It Deported Over 50,000 Scam Center Workers to China

Thailand is taking unprecedented action against transnational cybercrime syndicates by cutting electricity, internet, and fuel supplies to key crime hubs in Myanmar, starting today.
A general view of Myanmar's Myawaddy town is seen from across the Thai side in Mae Sot district on April 11, 2024. Thailand is taking unprecedented action against transnational cybercrime syndicates by cutting electricity, internet, and fuel supplies to key crime hubs in Myanmar starting Wednesday, February 5, 2025. (Photo by MANAN VATSYAYANA / AFP)

Myanmar’s ruling junta said Tuesday it had deported to China more than 50,000 people suspected of involvement in online scam operations since October 2023, as it made a rare call to neighboring countries to intervene.

Scam compounds have mushroomed in Myanmar’s borderlands and are staffed by foreigners who are often trafficked and forced to work, swindling their compatriots in an industry analysts say is worth billions of dollars.

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by Agence France-Presse

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