Human rights activists demand the opening of an investigation into the detention of Moroccans in Southeast Asia, and urgent measures to be taken to liberate them.

Agadir 24 | Agadir24

Human rights activists became involved in the kidnapping and detention of Moroccan citizens by armed militias, subjecting them to torture and forcing them to work in electronic fraud activities within residential complexes on the border between Myanmar and Thailand.

These activities launched demands to intervene in this issue, liberate Moroccan citizens as soon as possible, and return them to the homeland, following the fate they were living in detention areas was confirmed.

Demands that an investigation be opened into the incident

Idriss Sedrawi, President of the Moroccan Association for Citizenship and Human Rights, called on the Public Prosecution Office to give instructions to the National Judicial Police Division in order to open a thorough investigation into the case of the detention of Moroccans in Southeast Asia, following a report from the Thai Embassy in Rabat, which confirms that many people have been subjected to human trafficking in this geographical area.

Al-Sedrawi explained that “the phenomenon of trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants is a widespread global crime that uses men, women and children as tools in order to achieve profit,” noting that “the beneficiary of this phenomenon is the organized networks or individuals who are behind these profitable crimes that exploit vulnerable or desperate people or “Who are simply looking for a better life.”

The human rights activist stopped at “the need for the Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Affairs to intervene in order to protect Moroccan citizens detained in these networks from mistreatment, neglect, exploitation, or even death related to human trafficking crimes.”

Required to be careful and careful

For his part, Mohammed Ben Issa, head of the Northern Observatory for Human Rights, denounced the detention of Moroccan youth by armed militias on the border between Myanmar and Thailand, subjecting them to psychological and physical torture and exploitation by armed groups and gangs active in the region, classifying these acts as “crimes of interference.” Within the scope of human trafficking as defined by international law, as well as national laws.”

Ben Aissa added, “The incident requires responsible and effective action by the competent authorities, led by the Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to coordinate with the various countries of the world concerned with this issue, especially since the matter does not only concern Moroccan citizens.”

The same speaker stressed the necessity of “raising awareness, especially among young people, of the dangers of moving to areas of tension and conflict, or accepting job opportunities without verifying them through direct communication with the embassies of those countries,” in light of “the escalation of the crime of human trafficking in recent years in the world.” This requires a lot of caution,” he said.

It should be noted that the Thai embassy in Rabat had announced, through an official statement, last Friday, that Bangkok “is ready to cooperate with all countries whose citizens have been lured or detained” by human trafficking gangs and forced to work in Thailand within electronic fraud networks.

The embassy’s statement came following reports that Moroccan young men and women, between the ages of 19 and 27 years old, were being detained in residential complexes on the border with Myanmar, by armed militias, following they were persuaded of fake job opportunities in the field of e-commerce with high wages.