Over 100 Myanmar nationals were rescued on Tuesday after Thai authorities busted a human trafficking ring in the town of Mahachai, located in Thailand’s Samut Sakhon province.
On Tuesday, members of the Thai-based migrant rights organization Aid Alliance Committee (AAC) were alerted about the ring after five victims managed to escape. That same evening, the AAC teamed up with the Thai Department of Special Investigation and went to a house in Mahachai — located approximately 45 kilometres southwest of Bangkok — where the victims were reportedly being held.
There, they found another 114 Myanmar workers who had had their passports confiscated by the brokers and were being forced to stay in the locked house with no access to external communication.
“They took between MMK400,000 and K800,000 from each person. When [the workers] got here, [the culprits] asked for an additional THB9,000 [approximately K364,0000]. It’s been two months since they arrived here and they still haven’t been given any work,” Ye Min, an AAC member, told 7Day.
Another AAC member, Khaing Kyi, said: “[The police] have told us that they’ll help them get back their passports. Thai authorities are currently conducting an investigation. They’ve said that they won’t arrest the workers, and will help them retrieve their passports and find work.”
The workers told authorities that there were two brokers — one Thai and one Myanmar. Thai police have the Myanmar broker in custody, and are currently on the hunt for the Thai national. Both will be tried under human trafficking charges.
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