Jamaine Punzalan

Article (news)

THUMBNAIL

Zen Hernandez

ABS-CBN News

MANILA — The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Thursday it has intensified  rescue and repatriation efforts for over a hundred Filipino human trafficking victims stranded in scam centers across Southeast Asia.As of July 7, a total of 118 Filipinos remain in need of repatriation from four countries, including 75 in Myanmar, 30 in Thailand, 7 in Laos, and 6 in Cambodia.Among those in Myanmar, 14 individuals are being processed for transfer, according to the DFA. The department assured the public that Philippine embassies in the region were coordinating with local authorities to facilitate rescues and extend immediate assistance.“We remain committed to the rescue and repatriation of all Filipino HTVs (human trafficking victims) that are working in illegal call centers in the region. We call on all our kababayans, including our Filipino communities abroad, to support all efforts to prevent all modes of recruitment and victimization of our Filipino nationals in schemes that lead to forced criminality and participation in scamming operations,” the DFA said in a statement.<div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/3/24/30-filipino-human-trafficking-victims-repatriated-from-myanmar-arrive-in-manila-0733">30 Filipino human trafficking victims repatriated from Myanmar arrive in Manila</a></div>From January 1 to July 15, 2025, the DFA said it responded to 480 trafficking-related assistance-to-nationals (ATN) cases in the region. These include 304 cases in Thailand, 110 cases in Cambodia, 61 cases in Laos, and 5 cases in Myanmar. Cases in Myanmar are particularly complex due to the presence of armed groups at border zones.On February 27, 2025, ABS-CBN spoke exclusively with one of the Filipino victims still trapped inside a scam operations center in Myanmar. With her real name withheld for security reasons, alias Grace was only able to contact her sister and ABS-CBN News after her Chinese supervisor temporarily stepped out of their workplace.A former household worker in Saudi Arabia, Grace was initially promised a job as a call center agent in Thailand with a pay of P50,000. Within one week, she found herself flying from Manila to Bangkok. But after arriving in Bangkok, she was picked up by three unidentified individuals and transported for 6 hours by land to the Mae Sot river, a natural border between Thailand and Myanmar.She was then forced to hop on a boat and made to stay down throughout the ride. On the Myanmar side of the border, armed men picked her up and brought her to one of the buildings inside what seemed to her, like an operations complex. They also confiscated her passport and cellphone. When her job commenced, it became clear that she fell into the hands of an international scamming syndicate. The scheme was exactly the same as the scam described in an alert bulletin issued by the United States Treasury Department in September 2023. Termed “pig butchering,” the scam involves deceiving victims, usually in the US and other developed countries, by building an online relationship with them through “catfishing” or the use of fictitious personas. As soon as trust is established, they are persuaded to make increasing investments in cryptocurrency schemes. But once unable to or are unwilling to pay, the scammers will immediately cease communication with the victims and steal their assets. The criminal syndicates meanwhile sustain its operations by trafficking workers across Asia and Africa, into forced labor, subjecting the workers to surveillance and corporal punishment. Grace said they were often subjected to flogging, physical punishment and electrocution, whenever they make mistakes or fail to turn in the required revenue or get new recruits. The DFA said it was working with its Foreign Service Posts (FSPs) in Thailand, Myanmar, Lao PDR and Cambodia to respond to calls for help or assistance from Filipino victims. The FSPs coordinate closely with host governments, who lead the actual rescue operations. <div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/6/27/thai-teen-jumps-out-of-8th-floor-window-to-escape-cambodia-s-brutal-scam-farms-1126">Thai teen jumps out of 8th floor window to escape Cambodia’s brutal scam farms</a></div>In Myanmar, the Philippine Embassy in Yangon submits the victims’ names to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), which in turn coordinates with either the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) or the Border Guard Forces (BGF) to secure the release of victims. Once rescued, the victims are placed in holding centers, where embassy officials verify their identities and issue travel documents - crucial for those whose passports were stolen by traffickers. Only then will the Myanmar and Thai governments allow their crossing through the Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge, a key route for eventual repatriation.The DFA reminded Filipinos to remain vigilant and avoid illegal recruitment channels that lead to trafficking and forced criminality.Relatives of those believed to be trapped in scam hubs at the Myanmar-Thai border may reach out to the Philippine Embassies in Yangon and Bangkok for assistance, through the following hotlines and contact details.<div>MYANMAR </div><ul><li>Yangon Embassy Assistance-to-Nationals (ATN) Hotline: +95 998 521 0991 </li><li>Email: yangonpe.atn@dfa.gov.ph or via Philippine Embassy in Myanmar FB messenger</li></ul><div> </div><div>THAILAND </div><ul><li>Bangkok Embassy ATN Hotline: +66 81989 7116 </li><li>Email: <a href="mailto:bangkok.pe@dfa.gov.ph">bangkok.pe@dfa.gov.ph</a></li><li> </li></ul>“The Philippine government further wishes to reiterate its advice to all Filipinos to pass through the proper deployment procedures established by the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) and other concerned agencies, prior to departing the country for overseas employment,” the DFA said in a statement.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Thursday it has intensified rescue and repatriation efforts for over a hundred Filipino human trafficking victims stranded in scam centers across Southeast Asia.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Thursday it has intensified rescue and repatriation efforts for over a hundred Filipino human trafficking victims stranded in scam centers across Southeast Asia.

DFA ramps up rescue efforts for over 100 Filipino victims trapped in Southeast Asian scam hubs

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DFA ramps up rescue efforts for over 100 Filipino victims trapped in Southeast Asian scam hubs

Zen Hernandez,

ABS-CBN News

Published Jul 17, 2025 03:04 PM PHT

Read More:

Philippines

DFA

Department of Foreign Affairs

Scam hubs

Myanmar

Thailand

Cambodia

Filipinos

Human trafficking

Southeast Asia

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