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Thailand And China Collaborate To Combat Illegal Scam Call Centres In Southeast Asia

Thailand and China are collaborating to combat illegal call centres along their borders, tackling phone scams and human trafficking.

Thailand and China have announced a joint effort to tackle the growing problem of illegal call centres operating along the Thai border with Myanmar and Cambodia. These centres, often staffed by trafficked workers, are primarily involved in phone and online scams that target people around the world.

Southeast Asia, particularly the border regions between Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia, has become a major hub for telecom fraud. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the United Nations has highlighted the alarming increase in scam operations, with hundreds of thousands of individuals trafficked into these centres. Many of these workers are subjected to severe exploitation and abuse.

In response to this crisis, Thai police announced on Friday that a coordination centre would be established at the national police headquarters in Bangkok to investigate and dismantle scam networks. Additionally, Chinese authorities are planning to set up another centre in Mae Sot, a town near Myanmar’s Myawaddy, a notorious hub for scam operations.

“This centre (in Bangkok) will work together (with China) to investigate and combat call centre gangs based in Myawaddy, Myanmar, and along the Cambodian border, which involve many Chinese and Thai nationals,” the Thai police said. The centre is expected to begin operations in February 2025.

The growing public pressure in Thailand to address these scam compounds comes in the wake of reports of inhumane treatment of trafficked workers. China, too, has expressed increasing concern, especially following the high-profile abduction and rescue of Chinese actor Wang Xing, who had been trapped in a scam centre in Myanmar.

Recent discussions between Thai and Chinese security officials in Bangkok, as well as a meeting in Kunming, China, have led to agreements aimed at eradicating telecom fraud networks operating across the region. This week, Thai military officials also met with Myanmar’s military junta to discuss joint efforts to combat human trafficking and online fraud.

Myanmar’s state-run Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper reported that the junta has repatriated over 55,000 foreign nationals, including more than 53,000 Chinese citizens, from scam centres between October 2023 and January 2025. Despite claims that neighbouring countries support these operations, Thai Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai has rejected these allegations, emphasising that Myanmar and China must also play a critical role in addressing the issue.

The collaborative efforts between Thailand and China signal a strengthened regional approach to tackling illegal call centres and human trafficking, though challenges remain in fully dismantling the complex networks operating in the region.

Melissa Enoch

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