He conveyed this during the 28th ASEAN Political-Security Community Council Meeting in Vientiane, Laos, on Tuesday.
In an official press release, the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs said that human trafficking victims in Southeast Asia are often exploited for other crimes, such as online scams.
"ASEAN needs to follow up and provide a special agreement on the ASEAN Leaders' Declaration on Combating Trafficking in Persons Caused by the Abuse of Technology," the minister said.
Tjahjanto expressed concern that if the issue is not addressed collaboratively, ASEAN could become a hub for criminal activities related to fraud and trafficking in the future.
He added that ASEAN has agreed to law enforcement cooperation under the Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters.
The minister expressed the hope that the treaty could become the basis for building cooperation among Southeast Asian countries to handle human trafficking cases.
Indonesia has experienced a surge in online scams and forced labor cases, with victims often lured to neighboring countries.
The foreign ministry reported 3,428 cases of online scams involving Indonesian citizens from 2020 to 2023.
Thousands of cases were recorded across eight countries, with the majority occurring in Cambodia, Myanmar, and the Philippines.
Recent data reveals that from 2020 to March 2024, at least 3,703 Indonesian citizens fell victim to online scams, approximately 40 percent of whom were identified as victims of human trafficking.
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Translator: Walda Marison, Raka Adji
Editor: Tia Mutiasari
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