Editorial Board, The Sankei Shimbun 
Foreigners released from a scam center in Myawaddy, eastern Myanmar, on February 17. (©Kyodo)
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Thai authorities have rescued two Japanese high school students, aged 16 and 17. They were in an international crime hub in Myanmar where they were forced to commit fraud.
The two youngsters were lured by someone they met online and taken to a fraud center in Myanmar near the Thai border. Without realizing it, they had been tricked into illegal work. At the Myanmar center, they were forced to commit fraud against Japanese citizens over the phone and online.
Facilities engaged in scams targeting Chinese have long existed in this area. Authorities from China and other countries have repeatedly sought to root out the scam artists. However, they have been unable to eradicate their operations. Even the Myanmar military has been unable to exercise effective control in this area where opium poppy cultivation has been the main industry.
Behind the Criminal Hubs
The kingpins of the scam operation are Chinese gangsters. Initially, they targeted other ethnic Chinese. Then, later, they began targeting people from other countries as well, imprisoning foreigners and forcing them to commit fraud. The operation has grown into a huge international fraud hub with over 10,000 involuntary workers.
In the case of the Japanese high school students, their abduction and confinement followed the group's typical manner of operating.
Thai authorities have recognized the two as "human trafficking victims." There is an organized group that lures fellow Japanese with offers of "lucrative employment overseas" and then sells them to scam center groups in other countries.
This is a very serious issue. Japanese police must thoroughly investigate and root out human trafficking routes. We want to see them uncover the reality of human trafficking using the information they have accumulated so far on specialized fraud organizations and other anti-social groups.
Japanese Human Trafficker Arrested
Thai authorities have arrested a Japanese man who brought high school students to Myanmar. They have also arrested four other Japanese suspected of being in Myanmar as members of a criminal organization. One of the abducted high school students has testified that there were "about ten people there who looked Japanese."
More than 7,000 foreigners who were at the scam center were taken into protective custody in January or February. It is the responsibility of the Japanese police to cooperate with other countries to discover and rescue other Japanese victims. Moreover, the Japanese police must crack down on human trafficking activities in Japan as well.
Dangerous and Life-Threatening
Testimonies from released foreigners have revealed that individuals forced to work there are often assaulted if they do not produce satisfactory fraud results. They described the atmosphere in the scam centers as dangerous, even life-threatening.
There is a need to inform people, especially young people, that offers of high-paying jobs overseas are highly suspicious and could be extremely dangerous. It is important to inform travelers to affected areas, such as Thailand and Myanmar, that foreigners, including Japanese people, are being targeted by crime centers. Japanese authorities should encourage travelers to take measures to protect themselves. To do that, we need more information on where the overseas fraud bases are located.
Even so, the utter outlandishness of this mammoth fraud base run by Chinese criminals is glaring. It has come to involve so many foreigners. This is also a factor in the general deterioration of security around the world.
Above all, the Chinese government has an urgent responsibility to clean up the activities of these Chinese criminal organizations.
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Author: Editorial Board, The Sankei Shimbun
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