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12 FILIPINOS ILLEGALLY RECRUITED, BEATEN, EXPLOITED TO WORK AS ONLINE SCAMMERS SAFELY REPATRIATED FROM MYANMAR

admin February 23, 2025

TWELVE Filipino victims of illegal recruitment and human trafficking in Myanmar were safely repatriated by the Philippine government and are now being assisted by the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) for all the necessary assistance and support they need.

The victims safely arrived at the NAIA Terminal 3 in Pasay City on February 19, 2025 via Cebu Pacific 57864 through the joint efforts of the Philippine Embassy, Office of the Police Attaché, and Migrant Workers Office in Bangkok.

Upon their arrival, the victims were given immediate assistance, including psychosocial services, financial aid, and legal aid from a whole-of-government team composed of DMW, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Bureau of Immigration (BI), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), the Department of Justice (DoJ), and NAIA Task Force Against Trafficking (NAIA-TFAT).

The victims were recruited through Facebook by a Filipino who offered jobs as customer sales representatives in Myanmar, only to be exploited to work as online scammers without pay or rest days.

They were physically abused, beaten with PVC sticks, and subjected to electric shocks. Sometimes, they were forced to do the duck walk, frog walk, jump, and squat for hours.

Because of the exploitative situation, the workers sought permission to leave, but their employer demanded $15,000. Unable to pay, the workers ran away from the scam city and were assisted by the Myanmar military.

They were among the 250 people held at the Myanmar scam center and released at the Thai border, Phop Phraas.

The DMW reiterates its warning to OFWs and Filipinos seeking overseas job opportunities to be more cautious against dubious job offers on social media platforms and to always verify the legitimacy of their preferred agency and its approved job orders through the DMW website (https://dmw.gov.ph/).

Further, any suspicious activities pertaining to illegal recruitment and human trafficking can be reported to the DMW Migrant Workers Protection Bureau through their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/dmwairtip, email at mwpb@dmw.gov.ph, or through their hotline number +63 2 8721-0619 for legal assistance.