Indonesia Repatriates 561 Citizens Rescued from Myanmar Scam Centres
The rescued individuals, freed from forced online fraud operations, are undergoing questioning to determine their roles in the criminal networks.
- 561 Indonesians freed from scam centres in Myanmar's Myawaddy region are being repatriated via Thailand, with flights scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday.
- The scam centres, part of a Southeast Asian criminal network, exploit trafficked individuals by forcing them into online fraud under abusive conditions.
- Many rescued Indonesians reported severe abuse, including beatings, electrocution, and threats of organ harvesting for failing to meet fraud targets.
- Authorities are questioning the repatriated individuals to distinguish victims from those potentially complicit in the operations, with legal action possible for the latter.
- Despite recent crackdowns freeing 7,000 people, the United Nations estimates that up to 120,000 individuals remain trapped in similar operations in Myanmar.