Human Rights Group: "Over 6,000 Foreigners Detained by Criminal Organizations in Myanmar"

Over 6,000 People Detained in Myanmar Due to Human Trafficking and Other Crimes

Amid an incident where a Chinese actor was kidnapped in Thailand and rescued in Myanmar, claims have emerged that over 6,000 foreigners are being held in Myanmar due to human trafficking and other crimes.

Chinese actor Wang Xing (right) rescued from Myanmar

According to reports from Thai media outlet The Nation on the 11th, the human rights organization "Civil Society Coalition for the Support of Human Trafficking Victims" (Civil Society Coalition) stated that more than 6,000 people from 21 countries, including approximately 3,900 Chinese nationals, are being held by criminal organizations in Myanmar. They added that the victims are suffering severe mental and physical abuse, and their families are being demanded large ransoms.

The Civil Society Coalition sent an open letter the previous day to the Thai National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) along with representatives from nine countries including the Philippines, Laos, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, urging urgent intervention to rescue human trafficking victims in Myanmar. They explained that many victims are lured to Thailand by false promises of well-paying jobs and then trafficked to Myanmar.

Furthermore, the Civil Society Coalition pointed out that Mae Sot in Tak Province, located in the northwestern border area between Thailand and Myanmar, serves as a transit point where Myanmar criminal organizations send victims. Chinese actor Wang Xing, who was kidnapped in Thailand on the 4th and rescued three days later, was taken through Mae Sot to Myawaddy in Myanmar. Since the Wang Xing kidnapping incident, similar suspected cases have continued to emerge, including reports of the disappearance of 20-year-old Chinese model Yang Zheqi at the Thailand-Myanmar border.