Myanmar’s pro-military parliament passes ‘Anti-Online Scam Bill’ introducing death penalty

The speaker of Myanmar’s pro-military parliament, Aung Lin Dwe, has approved the country’s sweeping “Anti-Online Scam Bill,” establishing harsh legal penalties—including capital punishment and life imprisonment—for individuals involved in forced labor, torture, and cyber fraud operations across the country. The landmark legislation is the first major piece of criminal law enacted by the military-proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP)-led administration that took office following the regime’s 2025–26 elections. The law targets the industrial-scale cyber scam compounds that have flourished along Myanmar’s borderlands since the February 2021 military coup. Death penalty and life terms: Key provisions of the law The final version of the bill passed through both houses of parliament with minimal amendments following its initial submission on June 3 by regime Minister for Home Affairs Nyunt Win Swe. Drafted by the regime’s Central Committee for the Supervision of Online Fraud Prevention and introduced in May, the law comprises 12 chapters and 63 sections designed to dismantle criminal syndicates and online fraud. “There were not many significant changes to the proposed draft bill after discussions between the lower house and upper house. The important parts of the bill remained the same,” confirmed Aye Chan, a Pyithu Hluttaw (lower house) lawmaker for the ruling USDP administration who represents Yangon’s Hlaing Tharyar Township. Enforcement push: Mass detentions and deportations Regime media reported that the legislative push was a “national responsibility,” highlighting growing coordination with neighbouring states—including China and Thailand—to crack down on borderland online fraud hubs operated by transnational criminal gangs. The passage of the bill coincides with intensified border sweeps, particularly around Karen State’s Shwe Kokko—a notorious illicit casino and cyber scam complex in Myawaddy Township along the Thai border: Diplomatic smokescreen vs. real enforcement While Naypyidaw presents the law as a decisive step toward clearing international blacklists and restoring regional security ties, human rights organizations and opposition figures remain highly skeptical. Rights groups warn that the law provides broad, centralized surveillance powers over digital networks and private assets while ignoring the deep complicity of pro-regime Border Guard Force (BGF) and pro-military militias that directly profit from leasing land to foreign criminal syndicates.