Poker Writer
Myanmar’s junta government is now broadcasting the crackdown on illegal gambling and scam centers, showing buildings being bulldozed, equipment being destroyed, and foreign nationals detained.
There had been speculation that the military crackdown on so-called scam cities like KK Park was only for show, with accusations of political theater. The junta seems to have responded to such speculation with the widespread broadcasts of the scam center demolitions. KK Park and Shwe Kokko are the two towns in the crosshairs of the junta in these raids thus far.
Myanmar’s state-run television, MRTV, has broadcast daily videos showing authorities taking action against the scam centers. Footage has shown hundreds of foreign detainees in Shwe Kokko having to squat in a line as they are evaluated.
The more dramatic videos from KK Park show a steamroller crushing computers as well as explosives taking out buildings. Bulldozers also toppled several buildings in the compound.
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Some raised questions as to why the junta would destroy so many buildings and computers, rather than re-purpose them:
Is(n’t) Myanmar drowning in cash or something? Aren’t they one of the poorest countries in the world? Why would they destroy a bunch of stuff like that?
And that the military was taking out its ire on the wrong targets:
Do they know the problem aren’t the computers?
The government of Myanmar appears to be very concerned with messaging and wants to demonstrate that the nation is serious about combating corruption and scams. They believe these videos show a strong message.
Foreign pressure has begun mounting on Myanmar to address the well-known scam centers. The U.S. Department of Justice recently announced the creation of a “scam center strike force” aiming to stop fraud operations in Southeast Asia.
Myanmar’s government aims to show it’s doing its part in the battle. However, dozens of scam centers reportedly exist along the country’s border zones. Despite the arrest of thousands of foreign scam workers, many of whom were tricked into forced labor, more could come to take their place if the infrastructure isn’t destroyed.
Ethnic tensions in Myanmar have led to disputes on the border over who is handling the scam center compounds.
The military-backed Border Guard Force signed a ceasefire with the army and with the resistance force, the Karen National Union (KNU). The military government claimed that the KNU was sheltering the scam centers, a claim that the KNU denied.
Image credit: Mil.ru/Wikimedia Commons (license)
