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Laos orders Golden Triangle scammers out of zone by end of month

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  • Laos orders Golden Triangle scammers out of zone by end of month
  • August 13, 2024
  • Article Body Text <p><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;">Authorities in northern Laos have given illegal call centers operating in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone until the end of the month to clear out or face police action, according to officials and state media.</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>The murky Chinese-run special economic zone, or SEZ, along the Mekong River in Bokeo province is a gambling and tourism hub catering to Chinese visitors as well as a haven for online fraud, human trafficking, prostitution and illegal drug activities.</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>Scamming operations run by Chinese nationals who try to trick people into fake investments are rife in the zone and typically employ Laotians and other Asians trafficked to the area to work in the call centers. Many of the workers are mistreated and prevented from leaving the premises.</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span><figure class="image-richtext image-inline captioned" style="width:768px;"> <a href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_002.jpg" rel="lightbox"><img alt="Lao-China Friendship Street in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)" height="576" src="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_002.jpg/@@images/0585a6c8-6936-4355-9b25-43ae170aa862.jpeg" title="ENG_LAO_SCAM CENTERS_08122024_002.jpg" width="768"/></a> <figcaption class="image-caption">Lao-China Friendship Street in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)</figcaption> <small></small> <div id="zoomattribute"> <a data-caption="Lao-China Friendship Street in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)" data-fancybox="" href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_002.jpg" id="single_image" title="Lao-China Friendship Street in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)"> <img src="/++plone++rfa-resources/img/icon-zoom.png"/> </a> </div> </figure> While authorities have <a href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/chinese-arrested-alleged-online-scamming-07052024154614.html">arrested and deported</a> alleged operators, the scam centers persist, drawing condemnation from the international community.</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>Following an Aug. 9 meeting between the governor of Bokeo province, high-ranking officials from the Lao Ministry of Public Security, and Zhao Wei, the chairman of the Golden Triangle SEZ, Lao authorities ordered all scam centers to be “completely shut down by Aug. 25,” according to state media reports and an official from the public security ministry.</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>The official who, like others interviewed for this report, spoke on condition of anonymity due to security concerns, told RFA Lao on Monday that the centers were given the opportunity to “remove all of their belongings by the deadline.”</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>“After that, we’ll set up a special force to enforce the order,” he said.</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>In the first half of 2024, as many as 400 call centers were operating in the Golden Triangle SEZ, up from 305 a year earlier, the official said. The centers have mostly targeted Chinese, prompting authorities in China to team up with their counterparts in Laos to tackle the problem.</span></p> <p><span><figure class="image-richtext image-inline captioned" style="width:768px;"> <a href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_003.jpg" rel="lightbox"><img alt="Arch at the northern entrance of the Lao-China Friendship Street in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)" height="576" src="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_003.jpg/@@images/925deac8-5436-4610-9c12-68a7a532922b.jpeg" title="ENG_LAO_SCAM CENTERS_08122024_003.jpg" width="768"/></a> <figcaption class="image-caption">Arch at the northern entrance of the Lao-China Friendship Street in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)</figcaption> <small></small> <div id="zoomattribute"> <a data-caption="Arch at the northern entrance of the Lao-China Friendship Street in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)" data-fancybox="" href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_003.jpg" id="single_image" title="Arch at the northern entrance of the Lao-China Friendship Street in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)"> <img src="/++plone++rfa-resources/img/icon-zoom.png"/> </a> </div> </figure> </span></p> <p><span>As of Monday, Lao and Chinese authorities have carried out nine raids, arresting and deporting 1,389 scammers, he said, including 1,211 Chinese nationals, 145 Vietnamese, 16 Malaysians, 13 Ethiopians and four Burmese.</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>Amid the scrutiny, “some of them [the call centers] shifted into online gambling centers,” the official said. “Those that were arrested and deported were not big fish; they were small fish that were hired by Chinese to work as scammers.”</span></p> <p><span><figure class="image-richtext image-inline captioned" style="width:768px;"> <a href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_004.jpg" rel="lightbox"><img alt="View of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, from Ban Sop Ruak in Thailand, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)" height="508" src="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_004.jpg/@@images/b17d1820-720d-46b7-bc37-f3d83a96e177.jpeg" title="ENG_LAO_SCAM CENTERS_08122024_004.jpg" width="768"/></a> <figcaption class="image-caption">View of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, from Ban Sop Ruak in Thailand, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)</figcaption> <small></small> <div id="zoomattribute"> <a data-caption="View of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, from Ban Sop Ruak in Thailand, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)" data-fancybox="" href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_004.jpg" id="single_image" title="View of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, from Ban Sop Ruak in Thailand, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)"> <img src="/++plone++rfa-resources/img/icon-zoom.png"/> </a> </div> </figure> </span></p> <p><strong>Order welcomed</strong></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>Residents of Bokeo welcomed the Lao government’s ultimatum.</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>“Getting rid of the crooks is a good move; my hat goes off to those authorities who follow the government’s policy,” said one man who lives near the SEZ. “A lot of people lost money by transferring it via their mobile phones to scammers.”</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>The owner of a guesthouse in SEZ said that getting rid of the scammers has been long overdue.</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>But he acknowledged that when the centers are shut down, “the SEZ will be empty – the hotels, guesthouses and restaurants will have no customers.”</span></p> <p><span><figure class="image-richtext image-inline captioned" style="width:768px;"> <a href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_005.jpg" rel="lightbox"><img alt="Entrance into the Sam Liam Kham Checkpoint building in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)" height="576" src="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_005.jpg/@@images/bbf5d736-ba9d-4017-9e12-0d383a48a02d.jpeg" title="ENG_LAO_SCAM CENTERS_08122024_005.jpg" width="768"/></a> <figcaption class="image-caption">Entrance into the Sam Liam Kham Checkpoint building in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)</figcaption> <small></small> <div id="zoomattribute"> <a data-caption="Entrance into the Sam Liam Kham Checkpoint building in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)" data-fancybox="" href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_005.jpg" id="single_image" title="Entrance into the Sam Liam Kham Checkpoint building in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Bokeo Province, Laos, July 25, 2019. (Slleong via Wikipedia)"> <img src="/++plone++rfa-resources/img/icon-zoom.png"/> </a> </div> </figure> </span></p> <p><span>The order to evacuate came a week after Lao authorities raided several call centers in the Golden Triangle SEZ, detaining and deporting 154 Vietnamese and 29 Chinese for their alleged involvement in the scams.</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>In January, <a href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/repatriate-03042024165756.html">Laos repatriated 268 Chinese citizens suspected of scamming</a> while living or working at the SEZ.</span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><span>In November 2023, <a href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/deportation-12052023164152.html">Lao authorities arrested more than 430 Chinese nationals</a> who appeared to be involved in fraudulent call center operations in the SEZ, and handed them over to their Chinese counterparts for deportation. </span></p> <p><span><figure class="image-richtext image-inline captioned" style="width:768px;"> <a href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_006.jpg" rel="lightbox"><img alt="A raid of what appears to be a call center is shown in a still image captured from video broadcast by Lao Public Security Television, Aug. 9, 2024. (laopstv via Facebook)" height="414" src="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_006.jpg/@@images/05e88fc4-2e99-4872-8a70-c6597710fbc0.jpeg" title="ENG_LAO_SCAM CENTERS_08122024_006.JPG" width="768"/></a> <figcaption class="image-caption">A raid of what appears to be a call center is shown in a still image captured from video broadcast by Lao Public Security Television, Aug. 9, 2024. (laopstv via Facebook)</figcaption> <small></small> <div id="zoomattribute"> <a data-caption="A raid of what appears to be a call center is shown in a still image captured from video broadcast by Lao Public Security Television, Aug. 9, 2024. (laopstv via Facebook)" data-fancybox="" href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/golden-triangle-sez-scammers-08122024171757.html/eng_lao_scam-centers_08122024_006.jpg" id="single_image" title="A raid of what appears to be a call center is shown in a still image captured from video broadcast by Lao Public Security Television, Aug. 9, 2024. (laopstv via Facebook)"> <img src="/++plone++rfa-resources/img/icon-zoom.png"/> </a> </div> </figure> </span></p> <p><span>And that September, <a href="https://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/chinese-09132023161835.html">the Lao Ministry of Public Security deported 164 Chinese</a> arrested in Vientiane and other Lao provinces, including Bokeo. Nearly 50 of them were arrested in the Golden Triangle SEZ and believed to be involved in running call centers. </span></p> <p><span></span></p> <p><strong><em>Translated by RFA Lao. Edited by Joshua Lipes and Malcolm Foster.</em></strong></p>
  • Content Type Text
  • Language English
  • NewsML Media Topics Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
  • Subtitles / Dubbing Available No
  • Rights Prachatai via Flickr
  • Network VOA
  • Embargo Date August 13, 2024 00:08 EDT
  • Byline By RFA Lao
  • Brand / Language Service Voice of America - English
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