Myanmar’s military-backed parliament yesterday approved a law on authorizing capital punishment for those who detain or violently coerce victims into working in online scam centers.Internet fraud factories have flourished in war-torn Myanmar, part of Southeast Asia’s thriving scam economy, targeting Web users worldwide with romance and cryptocurrency investment cons.The multibillion-dollar black market attracts many willing employees, but repatriated foreigners have also reported being trafficked to sites in Myanmar and tortured by scam center operators.
An aerial photo taken on Sept. 17 last year shows the KK Park complex, then a scam hub in Myanmar’s eastern Myawaddy Township, as pictured from Mae Sot District in Thailand border province of Tak.
Under pressure from other nations, including the US and China, the government of Myanmar President Min Aung Hlaing has pledged to crack down on the illicit industry. However, monitors say law enforcement raids and arrests have resulted in scam outfits relocating in the region rather than ceasing operations.Burmese lawmakers yesterday passed the “Anti-Online Scam Bill” at a joint session of parliament in the capital, Naypyidaw, parliament speaker Aung Lin Dwe said during a live television broadcast.
