Thailand Urged to Aid In Release of More Than 100 Human Trafficking Victims in Myanmar

October 29, 2024 MyanmarThailand Crime & Legal

An advocacy group urged Thailand to aid in the release of more than 100 human trafficking victims of “Chinese mafia syndicate” based in Myanmar’s Kayun State, according to a report by Benar News.

As much as 110 people from nine countries are “trapped in the areas controlled by the DKBA and BGF in Myanmar,” the Thailand-based Civil Society Network for Victim Assistance in Human Trafficking said in an Oct. 24 open letter to Thai Prime Minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra.

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The report also added that 19 Laotians, 55 Filipinos, 13 Bangladeshis, 10 Ethiopians, seven Pakistanis, three Kenyans, one Kazakh, one Uzbek and one Moroccan were trapped in the area controlled by the DKBA and BGF.

“Given Thailand’s recent election to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) for 2025-2027, this is a critical moment for the country to actively support humanitarian rescue operations for the victims and coordinate efforts to combat human trafficking along the Thai-Myanmar border,” the group said.

The DKBA, or Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, is a splinter group of Myanmar’s Karen National Union ethnic minority guerrilla force. The BGF is a junta-organized Border Guard Force largely recruited from the DKBA.

The generally pro-junta DKBA and BGF have been allowed to develop extensive businesses in Myanmar, opposite the Thai border town of Mae Sot, including casinos and online scam centers.

“The Chinese mafia syndicate specifically exploits the Mae Sot district as a transit hub for trafficking victims from various countries into Myanmar, taking advantage of the shared border along the Moei River,” the group said.

The Chinese groups operating the casinos and scam centers are believed to share profits with the Myanmar junta and its ethnic minority militia allies.

A Thai government spokesperson told RFA on October 28 that he could not immediately comment on the matter.

The scam center operators often confiscate the passports of those lured by job offers for “visa processing,” and then demand payment for travel and living expenses. Victims can be detained and assaulted, rights investigators say.

“Their phones were confiscated, and they were forced into debt bondage, face labor exploitation, severe physical abuse, and were held ransom,” the group said.

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