Four Ethiopian men, rescued from one of Myanmar’s infamous scam compounds, displayed visible bruises and scars on Wednesday, recounting the brutal treatment they endured. The men, who are now sheltered in a Thai military camp, shared their stories of daily torture and forced labor.
“I was punished frequently,” said Yotor, a 19-year-old survivor, showing cuts along his legs. “Electric shocks were a daily ordeal.”
Yotor and his fellow detainees are among 260 victims, mostly trafficked for exploitation, who were rescued last week as part of an ongoing multinational effort to dismantle scam centers operating along the Thai-Myanmar border.
For years, criminal gangs have trafficked hundreds of thousands of individuals to these scam compounds throughout Southeast Asia. Victims are coerced into participating in illegal online operations, including fraud schemes targeting unsuspecting individuals.
Thailand’s recent crackdown intensified after the abduction of Chinese actor Wang Xing, who was lured to Thailand under the pretense of a lucrative acting role, only to be found near Myanmar’s Myawaddy town. Following his recovery, authorities have bolstered measures, including cutting off power, fuel, and internet access to certain border regions, a tactic supported by China.
Yotor, who was initially promised a job in Thailand’s capital, Bangkok, was instead trafficked to Myanmar. “They lied to me,” he said, explaining how he was tricked into a dire situation.
Currently, around 7,000 people rescued from scam centers in Myanmar are awaiting transfer to Thailand. Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra confirmed the ongoing rescue efforts, with approximately 600 Chinese nationals set to be repatriated on flights starting Thursday from the Thai border town of Mae Sot.
Many survivors of these scam compounds reported being forced to work long hours, with some being coerced into defrauding others using messaging apps like WhatsApp. Faysal, a 21-year-old from Bangladesh, explained how victims are manipulated into deceiving clients. “When a client says ‘I love you,’ we are trained to exploit them for money,” he said.
However, the workers said that when they failed to meet their quotas, they faced severe physical punishment. “We are not scammers,” Faysal asserted. “We are victims.”