Junta forms anti‑scam body, pledges Interpol cooperation

MoI

Myanmar’s military regime has launched a new national committee to tackle online scam networks, vowing to work with Interpol and regional police bodies despite long‑standing accusations that such operations flourish under its protection.

The Central Supervisory Committee on Combating Telecom Fraud and Online Gambling held its first meeting in Naypyitaw on Thursday, a day after it was formally established. The 16‑member body is chaired by Home Affairs Minister Tun Tun Naung, who said the regime would block scam networks from expanding, create parallel committees in every state and region, and set up a national anti‑scam centre in the 2026–27 fiscal year.

He added that the committee would coordinate with mobile operators and internet service providers to shut down fraudulent phone numbers and websites.

The move comes shortly after the United States created its own multi‑agency “Scam Center Strike Force” to dismantle Chinese‑led criminal networks operating in Myanmar and across Southeast Asia. The junta has also promoted new cooperation mechanisms with China and Thailand, particularly in Myawaddy Township, a notorious hub for scam syndicates along the Thai border. It has joined a six‑nation framework with Cambodia, China, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam to address the issue.

But at Thursday’s meeting, Tun Tun Naung repeated the regime’s claim that Myanmar is not to blame for the problem, insisting that 99.6 percent of scam operators in Myawaddy had entered from Thailand and that Myanmar nationals made up only 0.4 percent of perpetrators. He also argued that illicit proceeds do not enter Myanmar’s banking system, and pledged to trace and seize assets linked to scam operations.

Those assertions stand in stark contrast to widespread evidence that scam centres operate with the protection of militias aligned with the junta. Groups such as the Karen Border Guard Force, led by Saw Chit Thu, and the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army are widely believed to profit from the industry and send substantial kickbacks to Naypyitaw.

Recent raids on compounds in Myawaddy — where regime forces destroyed equipment and buildings — have been viewed by analysts as attempts to erase evidence rather than dismantle the networks. Senior operators were reportedly evacuated in advance and have since relocated deeper inside Myanmar, where new scam hubs are already being established.

The junta’s latest initiative signals an effort to present itself as a partner in regional law enforcement — even as the underlying structures enabling the scam economy remain firmly intact.

-2025-12-15