Trafficked teens forced to become cyber scammers in Myanmar

Teenagers from Luang Namtha province in Laos were promised well-paying casino jobs but instead found themselves held captive hundreds of kilometers from home in an obscure facility they called “Casino Kosai” near Myawaddy, on Myanmar's chaotic border with Thailand. As the coronavirus pandemic disrupted the gambling businesses of regional criminal syndicates, they turned to online scams as a new source of revenue. These secretive operations have proliferated throughout Southeast Asia. Trafficked young people from across the region are held captive and forced to perpetuate the scams. Failure to find enough victims can result in brutal beatings and other forms of torture. There is no escape for the trafficked victims unless families pay an exorbitant ransom to the captors. Dozens of young people from Laos and other parts of Asia are still believed to be trapped at the Casino Kosai site, forced to work 16 hours a day in search of targets to swindle. Both victims and human rights experts say the trafficking is being aided and abetted by authorities on all sides through corruption or indifference. Read the story here: https://tinyurl.com/2xyktk24 Subscribe to our Youtube Channel: http://bit.ly/2x8eM0P BenarNews official site: http://www.benarnews.org Follow BenarNews: Facebook:   / 791961090884741   Twitter:   / benarnews