UN Demands Answers from Thailand Over Human Trafficking Scams

On 10th March 2025, a formal communication from the UN’s Special Rapporteurs on Contemporary Forms of Slavery and on Trafficking in Persons (with a focus on women and children) was sent to Bangkok. 

The letter highlights serious concerns over intelligence received about individuals from across the globe – including East Asia, South Asia, Africa, the Middle East, North America, and South America – being duped into forced labour within sophisticated online scam centres.

These centres, the UN alleges, exploit victims through coerced criminal activities such as financial fraud, romance scams, fake digital asset investments, and illicit gambling. 

The victims are reportedly lured by deceptive online job adverts promising lucrative incomes, only to find themselves imprisoned in guarded compounds, stripped of their passports and personal belongings. 

Accounts detail physical abuse, sexual harassment, and forced labour for minimal or no pay. Those who fail to meet targets or attempt to escape face severe punishment or are 'sold on' to other illicit operations.

The UN letter points out Thailand's pivotal role as a transit hub for victims en route to these scam centres in neighbouring countries, particularly in border regions with Myanmar's Karen State. 

Worryingly, some of these operations are said to rely on resources from the Thai side, including power, communications, and proximity to financial networks.
 

A key concern raised by the special rapporteurs is the failure to identify many of these individuals as trafficking victims, with some subsequently facing prosecution or punishment for offences committed under duress, such as illegal immigration or crimes perpetrated while enslaved in these scam centres.

Ten Urgent Questions for Bangkok

The UN’s letter formally requests the Thai government to provide detailed clarification on the following ten points:

Government's Stance: Thailand's official position on all the allegations outlined in the UN's letter.

Bilateral/Multilateral Measures: Details of any joint efforts with other nations to prevent and address this specific form of human trafficking.

Victim Identification Challenges: Obstacles faced in identifying victims coerced into criminal acts, and the strategies employed to overcome these.

Non-Punishment Principle: Steps taken by Thailand to ensure human trafficking victims are not penalised for offences directly resulting from their exploitation.

Consular Training: Information on the training provided to Thai consular and embassy staff for identifying and assisting victims.
 

Victim Repatriation Support: The nature of aid provided to victims returning to Thailand, including rehabilitation and access to their rights.

Post-Release Care: Measures for individuals released from scam centres, especially in light of external pressures from entities like China or armed groups in Myanmar.

Resource Misuse Prevention: Actions to prevent Thai resources from being used to support these illicit scam operations.

National/Regional Responses: Details of Thailand's participation in national and regional initiatives to tackle this type of organised crime.

Public Protection: Measures in place to prevent Thai citizens from becoming victims, particularly through deceptive online job adverts, and the role of the private sector and digital platforms.

The special rapporteurs underscore Thailand's obligations under international human rights law, specifically referencing the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the Palermo Protocol, and the ASEAN Convention Against Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (ACTIP).

They particularly highlight the crucial Non-Punishment Principle for victims, urging Thailand to uphold these commitments fully.

It's noted that similar letters have also been dispatched to the governments of Myanmar, China, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and the ASEAN Secretariat, indicating a broader regional concern.