Survivors of Myanmar’s scam mills talk torture, death, organ harvesting – and the battle to escape

• Footage smuggled out of the scam gangs’ crime hubs shows electrocutions, beatings and people handcuffed, blindfolded and forced to sleep in a pile
• There’s no central government law enforcement to intervene – as rumours swirl of organ harvesting and much more besides ‘going under the radar’

Those in charge of Myanmar’s scam centres don’t want the world to see what’s going on inside. Phones are confiscated upon arrival and work devices are wiped before anyone leaves, as scam bosses go to great lengths to hide their crimes.

Jane and Max, two Filipinos forced to work for one of the criminal outfits along Myanmar’s border with Thailand, were made to wait an additional 10 days before their eventual release in early July to allow their wounds to heal.

“They held us because of our bruises,” Jane said, showing scars on her back and shoulders. “They didn’t want anyone to see.”

Despite these cover-up efforts, evidence of widespread and severe abuse is mounting.

Footage supplied to This Week in Asia by victims and anti-trafficking activists shows electrocutions, beatings and workers who are handcuffed, blindfolded and forced to sleep in overcrowded rooms.

The videos were shot on camera phones and the locations and times could not be independently verified, but they paint a grim picture of the abuse being inflicted by the scam gangs of Kayin state’s Myawaddy township and its surrounds.

Tens of thousands of workers from around the world have been trafficked into the industry, which took root around 2019 and then went into overdrive following Myanmar’s 2021 military coup.

scroll down for article w video