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View all search resultsTrafficking cases mount as regional scam networks grow
Around 10,000 Indonesians have been ensnared in scam and human trafficking networks across Southeast Asia since 2020, according to a figure from the Foreign Ministry.
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This photo taken on July 17 and released on July 18 by Agence Kampuchea Presse (AKP) shows computers, smartphones and other equipment seized during a raid on a scam center in Kandal province, Cambodia. The number of suspects arrested in the crackdown on internet scam centers has risen to 2,000, a government minister told AFP on July 18. (AFP/Pool)
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s economic pressures mount and job opportunities remain scarce, more Indonesians are falling prey to online scams and human trafficking networks in Southeast Asia, a trend analysts warn will persist without a comprehensive approach and stern law enforcement.
The Indonesian Embassy in Yangon announced over the weekend that it had communicated with 148 victims of human trafficking stranded in Myanmar’s conflict-torn Myawaddy town, a hot spot for scam operations along the country’s border with Thailand.
The Indonesians were identified after the embassy received three separate reports involving hundreds of nationals across different locations in Myawaddy, including 58 reportedly located in the former KK Park complex, a notorious human trafficking hub cleared by Myanmar’s junta late last month.
Their identities were still being verified, with embassy staff coordinating with local authorities to move the victims to safe areas and facilitate exit permits for repatriation.
The announcement came just a week after the embassy handled another major case involving hundreds of foreign nationals, including 83 Indonesians, fleeing the KK Park complex. In less than 10 days, the Indonesian consulate said it had dealt with a total of 231 new trafficking cases.
Also on the weekend, Cambodian authorities arrested 106 Indonesians, including 36 women, on online scam charges following a reported raid in the Tuol Kork district of Phnom Penh.
Read also: South Korea summons Cambodian envoy over job scams targeting nationals
