The Karen Border Guard in Myawaddy on the Myanmar-Thailand border recently reported that nearly 7,000 suspects involved in telecommunications fraud have been rounded up, with plans to deport them through Thailand to their respective countries, including 621 Chinese citizens who have already been sent back.
However, local residents say that this is only a portion of those who voluntarily left, and there is still a huge gap compared to the actual number of people in various scam parks in Myawaddy.
Although officials claim to have blocked scam bases such as Shwegyin Valley, KK Park, and Ka Kha, multiple sources indicate that the scam activities have not been completely eradicated. The Karen Border Guard stated that KK Park, due to its remote location, is listed as the last area to be cleared, with actions to be taken after the searches in Shwegyin Valley and the Myawaddy urban area are completed. However, some scholars point out that the crackdown mainly targets those willing to return to their countries, while many scam groups continue to operate within the parks.
Local residents revealed: "Currently, there is no personnel movement in and out of KK Park, and the outside world cannot enter, but the scam activities inside seem to have not completely stopped." Recent leaked internal conversations within the park indicate that some scam groups are still discussing how to deal with the search operations, believing that the inspections may not be very strict.
Myawaddy has long been an active area for telecommunications fraud. Some observers believe that the actions of the Karen Border Guard alone are not enough to completely eradicate this issue. The Myanmar military's control over the area is limited, and the Karen armed groups collect land rent from the scam parks and pay a certain percentage to the military and government, forming a complex chain of interests.
Padho Saw Tawmoo Tun, a central executive committee member of the Karen National Union, pointed out that the telecom fraud industry not only involves park operators but is also closely linked to the Myanmar military and local armed groups.
External analysis believes that although China, Myanmar, and Thailand are strengthening cooperation to combat telecom fraud, whether the Karen Border Guard will completely give up this important source of income, and whether the governments of Thailand and Myanmar will have deeper cooperation, are still unknown.
Whether the telecom fraud issue will be truly resolved still requires further observation.
