Workers in Poipet, Cambodia opt to remain following the truce declaration
In the aftermath of the ceasefire agreement between Thai and Cambodian troops, approximately a thousand Thai workers at casinos and call centers in Poipet, Cambodia, have decided to return to work. The commander of the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB), Pol Lt Gen Trairong Phiwphan, made these statements on Wednesday.
Initially, a significant number of Thai workers expressed a desire to return to Thailand amid the border conflict. However, after the ceasefire announcement, most of them—except for 74—decided to remain and continue working in Poipet. The situation for Thai workers in Poipet has stabilized, although police warned that scam operations, mostly online scam calls, were still active and unrelated to the military tensions.
Checkpoints recorded substantial movement of Thai workers crossing back temporarily, but overall workers have opted to stay to maintain their livelihoods. The return of approximately a thousand Thai individuals back into Thailand from Cambodia was recorded by checkpoint records in Sa Kaeo province on July 26. However, on July 27, another 1,000 Thai workers expressed their intent to return to Thailand, but only 74 actually did after the ceasefire announcement.
The ongoing fighting between Thai and Cambodian troops on the border was not directly addressed in this paragraph. Scam gangs are believed to be operating as usual, despite the ongoing fighting. The CCIB's commander, Pol Lt Gen Trairong Phiwphan, warned the public about potential scams related to donations for border operations and shelters. Cybercrime investigators were monitoring for scam donation sites and would take immediate action to take them down. The current status of the ongoing scam cases involving Thai workers remains unclear.
The conflict significantly impacted Cambodian migrant workers in Thailand. About 400,000 Cambodians fled Thailand due to violence and xenophobic attacks linked to rising Thai ultranationalism exacerbated by the border dispute. Cambodian authorities have urged their nationals to leave Thailand, while the Cambodian population around Poipet has shown hospitality to Thai nationals, contrasting with the hostility Cambodians face in Thailand.
Thus, for Thai workers in Poipet’s casino and call center industries, the ceasefire has allowed them to mostly continue working without the immediate threat of conflict disruption. At the same time, the conflict has worsened the plight of Cambodian workers in Thailand, fueling ethnic tensions and mass departures.
Cybercrime investigators, led by Pol Lt Gen Trairong Phiwphan of the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB), continue to monitor for scam donation sites amidst the ongoing conflict and have vowed to take immediate action to take them down, highlighting the importance of cybersecurity in the general-news context. Despite the ceasefire, concerns about crime and justice persist, as scam operations, primarily online scam calls, remain active in Poipet, potentially impacting both Thai and Cambodian workers in the technology-driven casino and call center industries.
