Opinion - Blaming Cambodia, hiding the truth: Thailand's dangerous game of cybercrime deflection

The Star

10-07-2025

PHNOM PENH: While pointing fingers at its neighbour, Thailand quietly shelters the very crimes it accuses others of.
In a recent statement reported by The Nation Thailand, a spokesperson for the Thai government attempted to frame Cambodia as the epicentre of Southeast Asia's cybercrime crisis. The accusation was neither new nor surprising — but it was profoundly hypocritical.
For years, Thailand has sought to portray itself as a victim of transnational crime while deflecting attention from the fact that it is, in reality, a regional hub for cybercrime, drug smuggling and human trafficking.
Rather than promoting honest regional cooperation, Thailand has chosen a path of political distraction — one that not only damages bilateral relations but also undermines genuine efforts to tackle organised crime across Southeast Asia.
A convenient scapegoat
Thailand's claims that Cambodia is the source of scam networks are a tired and convenient narrative, crafted to distract from the deep-seated criminal infrastructure operating within its own borders.
Thai government officials continue to emphasise arrests of their nationals abroad, yet turn a blind eye to domestic trafficking networks, recruitment hubs and cyber-scam training centres operating under their own jurisdiction.
Several international investigations have documented how Thai border provinces, such as Sa Kaeo, Tak, Chiang Rai and Mae Sot, serve as launchpads for scam syndicates.
These criminal groups recruit, transport and traffic both Thai and foreign nationals into scam compounds in Laos, Myanmar and, occasionally, Cambodia.
Victims — often young people desperate for jobs — are funnelled through Thailand by well-organised networks that Thai authorities have failed, or refused to dismantle.
When Thai police do act, it's typically after pressure from international partners — not from any consistent domestic policy.
In early 2024, Thai and Chinese police cooperated in Chiang Mai to investigate scam recruitment rings, yet similar networks continue to flourish elsewhere in the country.
Why? Because for every arrest, many more are protected, hidden, or ignored by local officials.
Drugs, human trafficking, and complicity
Thailand's involvement in transnational crime extends beyond cyber scams.
It remains a key player in the Golden Triangle's narcotics trade, one of the largest drug-producing and smuggling regions in the world.
Methamphetamine and ketamine, smuggled in staggering quantities, often pass through Thai territory on their way to global markets.
Worse still is Thailand's role in human trafficking. According to reports from Amnesty International and others institutions, Thailand has become both a source and a transit country for trafficking victims — especially those lured into scam centres in neighbouring countries.
Thai nationals, foreign workers and even minors have been recruited via Thai-based agencies, smuggled across borders and forced into online scam operations.
Yet instead of addressing its own complicity, the Thai government has adopted the strategy of deflection — targeting Cambodia with vague accusations while avoiding accountability at home.
Dangers of political deflection
Blaming Cambodia serves a political purpose. It helps Thai leaders avoid uncomfortable questions from the international community and the Thai public.
It also allows them to project an image of law and order, even as corruption, weak enforcement and deliberate inaction allow criminal operations to flourish within Thailand itself.
This approach is not only irresponsible — it is dangerous. It undermines regional trust, weakens cross-border collaboration and fuels unnecessary diplomatic tensions.
Rather than building joint frameworks to combat transnational crime, Thailand has chosen to use Cambodia as a scapegoat. But the truth is harder to bury than officials may think.
Cambodia's constructive approach
Unlike Thailand's pattern of blame and evasion, Cambodia has publicly acknowledged the presence of scam operations on its territory and taken direct action.
The Cambodian government has launched multiple raids, cooperated with foreign embassies, deported thousands of foreign suspects and strengthened its cybercrime laws.
Cambodia has also welcomed multilateral cooperation, including working with UN agencies and neighbouring states.
If Thailand is sincere about combating cybercrime, it should match Cambodia's transparency and willingness to cooperate — instead of waging a media campaign based on distortion and denial.
Thailand's cybercrime problem is not Cambodia's creation — it is of Thailand's own making.
From its porous borders and complicit officials to its role in trafficking and drug smuggling, Thailand has more to fix at home than to criticise abroad.
If the Thai government truly wants to solve the regional crime crisis, it should begin by confronting the networks, enablers and institutions within its own territory.
Otherwise, its repeated finger-pointing at Cambodia will be seen not as leadership — but as cowardice disguised as diplomacy.
[Roth Santepheap is a geopolitical analyst based in Phnom Penh. The views and opinions expressed are his own.]