MAE SOT — One of the 260 people handed over to Thai authorities by DKBA forces in Myanmar after being rescued from a scam gang base recounted his harrowing experience with checkpoint officials at the cargo terminal of Pier 28, Ban Chong Khaep, Chong Khaep Subdistrict, Phop Phra District, Tak Province, on February 12.
Sulaiman, a 22-year-old Pakistani national, said he had previously worked in Dawei, Myanmar. About six months ago, he met a Chinese man who offered him a job in Mae Sot, Tak province, claiming he was working for the e-commerce company Amazon. The job supposedly offered good benefits, a pleasant working environment and a monthly salary of 1,500 dollars. Intrigued, he agreed and successfully passed the recruitment process.
The Chinese man then arranged a flight for him to Thailand via Suvarnabhumi airport. On arrival, he was picked up by another Chinese man and taken to Mae Sot. At this point, he had no idea where he was going. After passing through Thai immigration in Tak, he was taken to a hotel in Mae Sot where he saw a large number of Chinese people.
He spent a night in the hotel, and the next morning he was taken to the Thai-Myanmar border. The Moei River lay before him, an unfamiliar sight. Without understanding what was going on, he was ferried across to Myanmar. Throughout the journey, he did not know when he had left Mae Sot and entered Myanmar.
At that moment, Sulaiman said, he was confused and bewildered. When he reached the other side of the border, he encountered uniformed soldiers armed with guns. They were members of the DKBA (Democratic Karen Buddhist Army). Shocked and frightened, he asked the Chinese men accompanying him why he had been taken to Myanmar and not to Mae Sot. He received no answer. Instead, his passport and two cell phones were confiscated and he was threatened into working for an online scam organization.
Sulaiman stated that when he refused and insisted on going to Mae Sot as originally agreed, he was severely beaten and tortured. He was electrocuted until he had no choice but to comply. Even when he did his best at his assigned scam work, he continued to be beaten daily.
“A Chinese boss told me that I would have to pay 1,200 dollars if I wanted to leave. I managed to contact my family and they agreed to send the money. But after I transferred the amount, they still refused to let me go and demanded another 500 dollars. At that point, I realized that paying more money would not free me, so I had no choice but to keep working.”
Sulaiman explained that he was forced to work 18 to 20 hours a day in extremely harsh conditions. He tried to escape several times, but it was almost impossible as armed guards and soldiers were constantly monitoring the area.
“Even now, many foreigners are still trapped there. They are brought here from Bangkok in several vehicles and often exchanged between different traffickers. These people are incredibly ruthless. Getting out of there is the luckiest thing that has ever happened to me.
Now I will finally be able to reunite with my family. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the Thai military, the Thai government and the Myanmar authorities for helping me to return safely,” he said.
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