Burmese people are forced to go to work in landlocked Laos, one of the poorest countries in Southeast Asia. In Laos, wages are only about $200. $200 is a small salary. At the exchange rate before the coup, it was just over two hundred thousand Myanmar kyats. Now, $200 is close to ten thousand Myanmar kyats. In Myanmar, where the economy is in ruins, no basic worker can earn even ten thousand. As a result, young Burmese people are going to work in Laos for about $200. If they had not taken power, the basic wage in Myanmar would have been more than $200. Laos and Cambodia were once the poorest countries in Southeast Asia. Now, Myanmar has fallen under their control.
