Chinese assistant minister visits Mae Sot and Myawaddy

A Chinese assistant minister for public security visited the border district of Mae Sot in Tak and crossed into Myawaddy on Sunday to observe operations assisting victims of call-centre scam gangs.

Liu Zhongyi flew from Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok to Mae Sot Airport, arriving at 11:10 am, before travelling to the 2nd Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge to visit the border checkpoint.

Liu was shown the facilities prepared to receive foreigners rescued from call-centre gangs in Myanmar, who would be transferred to Thailand and processed through the national referral mechanism before being deported to their home countries.

He was welcomed by Pol Col Ploen Klinphayom, Deputy Commander of the Immigration Police Division 3.

Ploen, who is also the acting commander of Immigration Police Division 3, outlined the screening measures for "victims" to be sent from Myanmar. These measures were agreed upon by Thailand and Myanmar during a meeting of the Technical Border Committee between the two neighbouring countries.

Ploen explained that Thailand could receive a maximum of 500 victims from Myanmar per day. They would undergo biometric scanning, and their travel documents would be checked to confirm their nationality. The entire process was estimated to take about five minutes per person.

Following the briefing, Liu’s delegation crossed the bridge into Myawaddy, where they were received by Myanmar officials. The officials explained the process for transferring rescued victims of call-centre scams to the Thai side.

Liu later returned to Thailand via the Friendship Bridge and was scheduled to visit Shwe Kokko to observe operations cracking down on call-centre gangs in the area.