Due to the departure of Chinese scam-center workers and the resulting emptiness of the area, some Mon business owners in Shwe Kokko, Myawaddy Township, Karen State, along the Thai-Myanmar border, have had to close their operations and return to their hometowns.
According to local sources, after 2021, several Mon business owners moved to the Shwe Kokko area—where thousands of Chinese scam-center workers are based. These business owners established restaurants, beauty salons, barbershops, retail shops, banks, pharmacies, apartment rentals, and other businesses to provide services to the growing scam centers.
A restaurant owner from Shwe Kokko and someone close to the situation said that beginning in the third week of November, the State Administration Council (SAC) started shutting down and raiding buildings involved in scam operations. As a result, scam-center workers fled without a clear destination, leaving the area deserted, which in turn forced many businesses to close.
“Many Mon business owners opened restaurants in Shwe Kokko. Even though the area is full of scam operations, those doing restaurant businesses were usually left alone. But now that the Chinese and scam workers are gone, businesses can’t operate anymore. There are no customers, so they’re closing down,” the source said.
Although they frequently had to relocate because of clashes, business owners from Karen and Mon States chose to work in these areas because of greater income opportunities compared to going abroad for work.
He added that business owners had been running operations and living temporarily in Shwe Kokko, Min Let Pan, Phlu, Ingyin Myaing, and other areas known for large-scale online fraud based enterprises.
“Instead of going to Thailand or Malaysia, they go there to work. The profits are much higher. But because of the fighting, they had to flee at least twice a year. Only those who can endure living in such conditions are able to run businesses there,” he continued.
Some young people were also working inside the scam-center buildings. Those with basic computer skills could earn up to 400,000 kyats per month, while more skilled workers earned over 1 million kyats per month.
Currently, due to ongoing raids by the SAC, hotel buildings rented by business owners—many of which had been converted into scam-center offices—have shut down and deserted.
According to an SAC statement released on November 30, a total of 135 buildings involved in online scam operations were found in Shwe Kokko, Myawaddy Township. Between November 18th and the present, 101 buildings have been sealed off and confiscated.
The statement also noted that authorities confiscated more than 3,000 computers, over 2,000 mobile phones, more than 100 Starlink dishes, 22 routers, and many other business-related materials. The statement also noted the presence of 2,042 foreign nationals in the Shwe Kokko area.
