Borderlands: On the edge of humanity
Zach Hope and Kate Geraghty travel to the borderlands near Myanmar, where efforts are under way to rescue thousands of trafficking victims from scam factories.
Analysis
From the Thai borderlands, I saw the workers coming for their freedom
The nondescript town of Mae Sot on the Myanmar-Thai border has long been a hub of dubious trade. But now something remarkable is happening.
- by Zach Hope
Caught in a $60b scam, these workers tried to flee but the soldiers were waiting
It starts with a fake job ad and a free plane ticket to Bangkok. But when you cross into Myanmar’s lawless borderlands, you realise what you’ve walked into.
- by Zach Hope and Kate Geraghty
How Elon Musk’s Starlink enables a multibillion-dollar online scam industry
Looking across the Moei River from Thailand, you can see them on the distant Myanmar rooftops – dozens of white rectangles, arranged in clusters. They’re a warning sign for what could be lurking underneath.
- by Zach Hope and Kate Geraghty
The fight to free scam slaves in Myanmar
Lured by fake jobs in Thailand, victims are trafficked to Myanmar's notorious scam centres, forced into slavery, and made to commit online fraud under duress.
Original URL: https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/world/asia/borderlands-on-the-edge-of-humanity-20250522-p5m1kf.html