Drizzle falls as Sai Pan sits on the express bus, passing one checkpoint after another, looking forward to starting his new, high-paying job.
As the bus leaves the rough road and enters a smooth new path, Sai Pan's view fills with the towering buildings of Shwe Kokko in the distance. As he gets closer, his excitement is replaced by worry.
His destination, the new city of Shwe Kokko, is located in Myawaddy town of Kayin State, separated from Thailand by the Moei River. Although close to Thailand, the Chinese signs here resemble those in China more.
Sai Pan says, "Before coming here, I was excited about the salary of 1 million Myanmar Kyat (MMK) per month. But when I arrived and saw Shwe Kokko, an inexplicable pressure overwhelmed me. I felt depressed, as if I had stepped into China. Nevertheless, I had no other choice, so I persevered."
Sai Pan, a 25-year-old man from Taunggyi city in southern Shan State, had a stable online consumer goods business before the February 2021 coup. However, since mid-2023, his business has been declining. Therefore, when he got a job in Myawaddy town promising a high salary of 15,000 Thai Baht (THB) per month, he decided to take the risk.
He says, "At that time, 15,000 Thai Baht was even more than 1 million Myanmar Kyat. My business could hardly make a profit of 200,000 Myanmar Kyat in a month. So, I decided to take the risk, hoping to earn more."
Unbeknownst to Sai Pan, he would soon be involved in the infamous phone scam operation, also known as Zhapian, conducted in Shwe Kokko.
When he arrived at the scam center, he was surprised to find well-educated Burmese people, including medical students, engineers, and computer science graduates.
Realizing he had to scam others, Sai Pan did not want to do this job, but he was trapped and had to work because he did not have enough money to go home.
"I don't want to continue because this is a scam job—I have to deceive people. But if I perform poorly, the business owner will fire me immediately. I deeply regret coming to Shwe Kokko, but I don't even have enough money to go home.
So, I have no choice but to keep working, even though I hate this job," he says, his voice clearly trembling.
He says he is exhausted from constantly deceiving innocent people, and the Chinese scam center bosses exploit and treat him and other scam center workers unfairly.
About 400 people work in each scam center. They work in large, poorly ventilated enclosed halls, facing dismissal or pay cuts if they do not meet the targets set by their bosses.
He wants to leave and find another job, but the only available work in Shwe Kokko is scam work. Thus, while Sai Pan can change job positions, he cannot change the nature of the work he must do.
"For me, finding a job is really easy, but the real challenge is keeping it. About four months later, I managed to find another daytime job, which gave me some breathing space. Initially, I didn't receive my first paycheck until about 45 days into the job. I was always worried about being fired before getting paid. If I am treated unfairly, I have nowhere to complain. In fact, even those who complain are afraid of being arrested," he says.
Shwe Kokko is often referred to as "Chinatown of Kayin State," a new city project jointly developed by Colonel Saw Chit Thu, a leader of the Kayin State Border Guard Force (BGF) allied with the military government, and the Hong Kong-registered Asia Pacific International Holdings Group.
Before the coup, Shwe Kokko's electricity came from Thailand. However, after the coup, Thai authorities cut off the power supply. Despite this, Shwe Kokko continues to operate, relying on large generators and solar power.
Shwe Kokko has developed into a hub for gambling centers and scam enterprises. Its strict restrictions and opaque environment make it difficult for outsiders to enter or leave.
This is an advantage for Ma Khaing, another scam center worker lured to the area by false job promises. Before coming to Shwe Kokko, she participated in the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) against the military government, involving civil servants and those in health and education refusing to work for the military government. As a CDM participant, Ma Khaing was unemployed and persecuted by military authorities.
The job opportunities from Shwe Kokko seemed to offer the perfect escape. She could earn a lot of money and stay in an area away from military persecution.
She explains, "As a CDM participant, living freely outside was not safe. My family was always worried about my safety. At the same time, I was the only breadwinner in my family, and I couldn't afford to work abroad. Ultimately, this was the path I chose."
When Ma Kaing realized she had to engage in scam work, she felt sick, but felt stuck in the mire, unable to escape.
In her workplace, about 350 young workers are watched over by five Chinese security guards in black suits wielding batons, constantly monitoring them.
In front of them, each worker has a computer and two to ten mobile phones, depending on the tasks assigned to them. They are always monitored from behind.
Although Ma Kaing uses a computer for work, she is prohibited from using it for personal browsing or any non-work-related activities.
"Anyone caught using a mobile phone or computer for non-work-related activities is fired. They are always watching us from behind. I've been here for a long time, so I've gotten used to most situations, but I still get nervous every time I see someone pulled out in front of me for a mistake," she says.
Ma Kaing tries every day to trick strangers by sending deceptive messages on WeChat and Telegram. She often pretends to dial the wrong number or send the wrong message, then engages them in conversation, often leading to victims being scammed out of their life savings.
"I must admit, I've become very good at scamming now. They have provided us with formats to implement these scams. Since entering this industry, no one has had the chance to use their real skills or talents. They spend all their time deceiving others," she says, her voice tinged with sadness.
Ma Khaing also admits that she feels ashamed every time her mother reminds her not to forget her religious beliefs over the phone.
"Every time I call, my mother reminds me not to forget my religious beliefs. Hearing this, I always feel ashamed. If I had the chance, I would like to do a decent job outside, a job that would give me dignity. But no one understands my pain better than I do. In times of rising prices, it's hard to give up a high-paying job," she says.
Sai Pan sums up the fate of those who come to work in scam centers, saying, "As young people, we can't afford a future. We take these terrible jobs with only one goal: to earn more money. Our dreams have long since vanished."
Since the coup, the number of scam centers has increased significantly, as the military government and its allies have made a lot of money, which is crucial for the military government as it struggles to obtain foreign currency.
Initially, many scam centers were located along the border with China, but the Brotherhood Alliance cracked down on these centers in Operation 1027, driving many scam center operators out of the Chinese border.
Many scam center operators from the Chinese border have relocated to Kayin State under the protection of the Kayin State Border Defense Force. Despite the Kayin State Border Defense Force's order for all scam center operators in areas like Shwe Kokko and KK Park to leave Kayin State by September 30, 2024, these centers continue to thrive under the protection of the Kayin State Border Defense Force.
There are still many recruitment ads promising high-paying fake jobs to lure young workers to scam centers in Shwe Kokko.
Since 2022, foreigners have also been deceived, kidnapped, and trafficked to work in Myanmar's scam centers. They suffer forced labor, torture, and severe human rights violations, including people from Laos, India, Indonesia, Thailand, and China.
On the surface, Shwe Kokko is a beautiful, sophisticated new city bustling with foreigners, especially Chinese. However, behind this lies a darker reality—trafficked foreigners work here as slaves, and Myanmar's promising young people sacrifice their dreams of a better future, all to make ends meet.
