POGOs Banned, but Thousands Remain Trapped in Myanmar Scam Hubs

The crackdown on Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) has not dismantled the broader ecosystem of digital crime that exploits migrant workers. While the industry was formally banned in late 2024, the infrastructure for forced labor has merely relocated. According to reporting by The Diplomat, thousands of Filipinos remain trapped in scam compounds in Myanmar, where criminal networks have pushed operations further inland to evade border security.

This situation represents a significant escalation from the earlier model of offshore gaming. Journalist Eunice Barbara Novio, who has documented these trafficking routes, notes that the current phenomenon traces back to 2016, when POGOs flourished in agricultural towns like Bamban. The ban was a necessary step, but as former officials face life sentences for qualified human trafficking, the focus has shifted to the harder-to-reach networks now operating deep within Myanmar’s borders.

Legacy of Offshore Gaming Operators

The origins of this crisis lie in the rapid expansion of POGOs in the mid-2010s. These operators recruited large numbers of workers under the guise of legitimate employment, often luring them with false job offers. In places like Bamban, north of Manila, these operations became deeply embedded in local economies, creating a pipeline for exploitation that has since migrated across the border.

The legal response in the Philippines has been severe. Alice Guo, a former mayor of Bamban, was sentenced to life in prison in November 2025. The court found her guilty of qualified human trafficking, involving hundreds of individuals who were forced to run scams under threat of mistreatment and torture. This conviction underscores the scale of the coercion involved in these operations.

Shifting Criminal Networks Inland

As border controls tightened following the POGO ban, organized crime groups adapted by moving their compounds further into Myanmar. Novio reports that the number of Filipinos still held in these inland locations is in the thousands. This relocation makes rescue operations significantly more complex, as the victims are no longer within easy reach of the Thai border, where many previous extractions took place.

Institutional Response to Trafficking

The Philippines possesses a distinct institutional advantage in managing this crisis. The Department of Migrant Workers has a long history of handling the country’s extensive expatriate workforce. This agency has been instrumental in extracting and repatriating victims of organized crime, providing a structured channel for aid that other nations may lack.

However, the scale of the problem continues to outpace these efforts. The reconfiguration of scam hubs away from the border presents new logistical and diplomatic challenges. The forward question remains how effectively international cooperation can address the inland networks, given that the primary source of recruitment, the POGOs, has already been dismantled in the Philippines.