{"id":3488,"date":"2025-10-25T10:54:26","date_gmt":"2025-10-25T10:54:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/?p=3488"},"modified":"2025-10-25T11:36:14","modified_gmt":"2025-10-25T11:36:14","slug":"myanmar-from-prostitute-country-to-scam-nation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/2025\/10\/25\/myanmar-from-prostitute-country-to-scam-nation\/","title":{"rendered":"Myanmar: From \u201cProstitute Country\u201d to \u201cScam Nation\u201d?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Myat Maw (translated and edited for MMNN)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can Myanmar ever escape from its tragic destiny as a \u201cKyarr Phyan\u201d<\/em> \u2014 a scam nation built on deceit and greed?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

General Aung San once warned that Myanmar might one day become a \u201cProstitute Country.\u201d<\/em> At the time, few understood the depth of his foresight. Looking at today\u2019s reality, even that grim prophecy seems mild. What Myanmar has become today may be worse than what the General ever imagined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After his time, the nation that once dreamt of unity and freedom gradually put on a crown of cruelty. Myanmar became infamous for one of the world\u2019s gravest crimes \u2014 genocide \u2014 where people were killed merely for being of a different race, faith, or culture. The whole world looked on in disgust and disbelief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, in 2019, a new law was introduced \u2014 the 3% Money Whitening Law<\/em>, allowing black money to be \u201ccleansed\u201d simply by paying a 3% tax. Overnight, Myanmar became a haven for international scammers and money launderers, an investment paradise for those who live off deceit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One prominent tycoon<\/strong> even declared:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf Myanmar becomes a Scam Nation, our country will become rich.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And with that logic, the nation\u2019s leaders \u2014 including the State Counsellor, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi \u2014 were persuaded to approve the law. Though she privately admitted that many intellectuals might oppose such a move, she did not block it. The proposal, led by NLD MPs Daw Thet Thet Khine, U Tin Tun Naing, and Dr. Myat Nyan Soe, was passed<\/strong> \u2014 not because of widespread public support, but thanks to the backing of military and USDP legislators.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

From that moment, Myanmar officially became a Scam Nation<\/em><\/strong>, earning global ridicule for the second time in its modern history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps, then, Aung San\u2019s \u201cProstitute Country\u201d was too kind a metaphor. After all, prostitution may still evoke pity \u2014 but systematic scamming of one\u2019s own people and the world earns only contempt.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our neighbors tell a different story. Thailand, Vietnam, China, South Korea, and Japan \u2014 all once associated with poverty or exploitation \u2014 have reformed, modernized, and prospered.
Myanmar, by contrast, has squandered every opportunity since independence: expelling foreign entrepreneurs, seizing private industries, borrowing recklessly, defaulting on debts, and selling off its natural wealth. When resources dwindled, the elites turned to online fraud, black markets, and money laundering \u2014 the Kyarr Phyan<\/em> economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Driven by greed and the craving for easy profit, Myanmar has fallen below even the \u201cProstitute Country\u201d level \u2014 a nation now synonymous with deceit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, can Myanmar survive as a Scam Nation<\/em>?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consider Somalia \u2014 once torn apart by clan rivalries, now known globally for piracy and money laundering. Myanmar today seems to be following that same path. \u201cScam centers\u201d have mushroomed, running online frauds and ransom schemes, just like in Somalia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At this pace, Myanmar edges closer each day to becoming a failed state.
Recovery seems impossible. Only further decay lies ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And as this tragedy deepens, the world will continue to hear \u2014 and mourn \u2014 the bad news from Myanmar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the 3% Money Whitening Law<\/em> was enacted, the FATF (Financial Action Task Force)<\/strong> began taking measures against Myanmar in early 2020. As a result, Myanmar\u2019s reputation in the global financial system collapsed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Almost simultaneously, international crime syndicates began pouring into the country. Myanmar soon became one of the world\u2019s largest online scam centers<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was precisely because of this 3% law that scam networks found Myanmar so attractive. The law had been fiercely pushed by the military (Tatmadaw), the USDP, and certain NLD MPs \u2014 notably Daw Thet Thet Khine and U Tin Tun Naing \u2014 who lobbied hard, even against Daw Aung San Suu Kyi\u2019s initial hesitation and international opposition. For this reason, repealing the law now would be extremely difficult.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When scam-driven money flooded the real estate market, cronies were the biggest winners<\/strong>. Property prices soared, and the government \u2014 particularly the State Administration Council (SAC)<\/strong> \u2014 benefited from collecting property taxes on this inflated wealth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Myanmar\u2019s leadership now appears to believe that the country can survive without rejoining the international community, relying instead on black money to build its economy. Under such thinking, the 3% Money Whitening Law<\/em> remains firmly in place \u2014 ensuring that the Kyarr Phyan<\/em> (scam economy) continues to thrive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even if the government suppresses scam operations at the borders \u2014 such as those in the infamous KK Park areas \u2014 domestic scam centers in Yangon are quietly taking their place. The SAC seems to accept this trade-off: by taxing scam-derived income under the 3% law, it can maintain a steady revenue stream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus, Kyarr Phyan operations will not disappear \u2014 they will only expand within Myanmar.<\/em><\/strong>
And Yangon, now the \u201ccapital of the Scam Nation,\u201d will continue to see property prices rise and its economy driven forward by the power of deceit.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Editor\u2019s Note:<\/strong>
The views expressed by the author reflect a widespread public concern over Myanmar\u2019s deepening economic distortion, the moral decay caused by legalized corruption, and the lasting damage from policies that encouraged black-money circulation. MMNN<\/em> publishes these commentaries in good faith to promote open civic reflection and dialogue on the nation\u2019s economic and ethical direction.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Myat Maw (translated and edited for MMNN) Can Myanmar ever escape from its tragic destiny as a \u201cKyarr Phyan\u201d \u2014 a scam nation built on deceit and greed? General Aung San once warned that Myanmar might one day become a \u201cProstitute Country.\u201d At the time, few understood the depth of his foresight. Looking at […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3489,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,6,16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3488","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","category-history","category-opinion"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3488","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3488"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3488\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3492,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3488\/revisions\/3492"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3489"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3488"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3488"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3488"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}