Bangkok/New Delhi, Nov 6 (UNI) At least 270 Indians, including women, who crossed over into Thailand after escaping from cyber-scam centres in Myanmar, are being repatriated to India on board two special Indian Air Force flights.
The Indian Embassy in Bangkok said the Consulate of India in Chiang Mai in close coordination with various agencies of the Royal Thai Government has facilitated repatriation of 270 Indian nationals, including 26 women, from Mae Sot, Thailand, to India by two special flights operated by the Indian Air Force (IAF).
These Indian nationals recently crossed into Thailand from Myawaddy, Myanmar where they were allegedly working in cyber scam-centres. They were detained by Thai authorities for violation of Thai immigration laws when they had entered the country illegally.
The Indian Embassies in Thailand and Myanmar are working with the respective host governments to secure repatriation of the Indians who were allegedly involved in scamming activities and are still in Myanmar, it said.
Since last month, the Myanmar military has been conducting military operations against the notorious KK Park cybercrime compound, in Myawaddy near the border with Thailand, driving many people – mostly foreign nationals who worked there, including Indians, into the Thai border town of Mae Sot.
Myanmar’s KK Park is a notorious enclave known for its involvement in transnational cyberscams. The KK Park compound and others nearby are run primarily by Chinese criminal gangs and guarded by local militia groups aligned to Myanmar’s military.
The border areas between Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia have become hubs for online fraud since the coronavirus 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. According to the UN, billions of US dollars have been earned from the trafficking of hundreds of thousands of people forced to work in the compounds.
The Indian Embassy said that Indian nationals are strongly advised to verify the credentials of foreign employers, and check the antecedents of recruiting agents and companies before taking up a job offers overseas.
It said that visa free entry into Thailand for Indian passport holders is meant for tourism and short business purposes only, and should not be misused for taking up employment in Thailand.
In a related development, Thailand’s Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul on Thursday said his government is determined to prevent and suppress technology-related crime, particularly online scams.
“This is a war we must win,” Anutin, also the interior minister, declared, as 15 agencies joined in signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to cooperate in a unified national effort.
“Online scams are eroding the lives of our people, damaging families and undermining national confidence, economic stability and international reputation,” he said. “The hidden costs of these crimes are immeasurable.”
The MoU outlines a strategic framework for inter-agency cooperation to prevent and suppress cybercrime, with a focus on dismantling scam networks that have increasingly targeted Thai nationals.
Cybercrime is now considered a top-tier national security threat, the prime minister said, and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to treating it as a national agenda priority.
