Three arrested in connection with trafficking Sri Lankans to Myanmar

Three suspects have been arrested over the trafficking of Sri Lankans to Myanmar. The arrests were made in Wattala and Trincomalee areas.

Earlier this week, reports revealed that a group of 56 Sri Lankan nationals are currently being held captive by a terror group in Myanmar’s Myaweddi area, which is infested with cybercrimes under the grip of an armed group.

Lured with tourist visas behind the false front of lucrative job offers in the IT sector, these Sri Lankans had illegally entered Myanmar through its border with Thailand.

The Sri Lankans forcibly detained at the terrorist camp in Myaweddi are reported to be working as cyber slaves forced to commit internet scams.

The Sri Lankans, who fell victim to this scam, have said that they were initially unaware of the cybercrime camp. Despite initially being told that they would be doing jobs such as data entry, these Sri Lankans have been forced to appear as romantic partners to foreigners, especially Europeans and Americans, in order to steal their money. When they refuse to do as told, the captives are reportedly subjected to acts of torture, which they said include electrocution, waterboarding in cages, hanging them by their hands and starving.

On Friday (Dec.22), the Foreign Affairs Ministry said it has, together with the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Myanmar, have continued to actively seek the assistance and cooperation of the Myanmar authorities on the safe repatriation of the Sri Lankan nationals who have been trafficked to Myanmar.

According to the ministry, this situation has been going on since 2022.

As a result of the rescue and repatriation efforts spearheaded by the Consular Affairs Division of the Foreign Ministry in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Embassy in Myanmar and the Myanmar Government authorities, a total of 32 victims have been rescued between 2022 and 2023.

Given the grave nature of the situation, Foreign Minister Ali Sabry has raised concerns on the safety of Sri Lankan nationals with his Myanmar counterpart Than Swe on the sidelines of BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers’ Retreat in Bangkok, Thailand.

“The Foreign Ministry officials continue to raise serious concerns on the safety of Sri Lankan nationals with the Myanmar Ambassador in Colombo and seek assistance and early intervention to secure their rescue and repatriation”, the ministry’s statement read.

As per the information available to the Ministry, 56 Sri Lankan nationals are currently being held in the Myawaddy area in Myanmar. Thus, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs assured that all possible steps are being taken to liaise with Myanmar Government authorities and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) to resolve this issue. 

However, the Myanmar Government has notified the Ministry of its difficulties in accessing that area due to prevailing situation.