---
type: Country
title: Laos
description: Harry's only visit so far is to the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone — a Chinese-run enclave on the Mekong where the currency, the language and the law are not Laotian.
tags: [laos, golden-triangle, scam-centres, borders, china, mekong]
timestamp: 2026-08-05T20:00:00Z
---

# Laos

Harry has been to one part of Laos: the **Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone**
on the Mekong, opposite Thailand and within sight of Myanmar. Nothing on this page
should be read as being about the rest of the country, which he has not filmed.

*Obs: the video carries a long read-aloud eSIM sponsorship and a debit-card
affiliate link. No provider is recorded here.*

## The Golden Triangle

- **Three countries meet at the river**: Thailand, Myanmar and Laos, with China's
  influence running through the zone itself.
- **The region's history is opium** — grown in the hills, especially on the Myanmar
  side, moved through Thailand and out along its trade routes. Heavily suppressed
  since, and, in Harry's phrasing, replaced by other ventures.
- **Crossing is by longboat** across the Mekong, and is one of the more unusual
  borders he has done.

## The zone

Detail is on the [Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone](/places/golden-triangle-sez.md)
page. What belongs at country level:

- **Sovereignty is nominal.** The zone runs in Chinese, prices in yuan, and when
  Harry asks a resident whether this is China or Laos, the answer is China.
- **It exists because gambling is illegal in Thailand and China**, which is the
  legitimate half of the business: a casino for gamblers who cross the border to
  use it.
- **Law enforcement bodies have stated publicly that what happens there is not
  legal**, and reports describe hundreds of prison-like call centres where
  trafficked people are held and forced to run scams.
- **The Laotian government has raided it**, and Harry is told there has been
  violence recently — the state is described to him as either absent or complicit,
  and he doesn't resolve which.

## Source

- [Exposing the Human Trafficking Capital of the World 🇨🇳 🇱🇦](/videos/xPeiDMsuj6M.md) —
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPeiDMsuj6M