EJF revealed human trafficking and labour abuse cases onboard Thai fishing vessels. (Photo Credit: EJF)

Seafood industry human trafficking suspect under arrest

THAILAND
Tuesday, August 13, 2013, 04:40 (GMT + 9)

News of the arrest of a key suspect in human trafficking and labour abuse in Thailand has been welcomed by the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), the organisation which earlier in the year had uncovered alleged human right abuses with its report Sold to the Sea (STS).

The report, released in May this year, exposed serious breaches of human rights documented through several victims that talked about their plight. Some of the people trafficked in to Thailand were of Burmese nationality and as young as sixteen. They were reportedly forced to work on fishing ships under appalling conditions with no pay, effectively, as slaves.

The EJF report states that there is evidence of fisheries products coming from boats involved in human trafficking and entering the European Union (EU) market.

Four of the 14 rescued workers pinpointed a man called Ko Myo as being in the lead of a trafficking organization based in the Trang province in southern Thailand.

The EJF states that The Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) reported earlier last week that the racketeering and human trafficking gang was presumably responsible for around 40 murders.

The Oslo-based media organization, which provides uncensored news and information about the country under military regime, informed that the Royal Thai Police and Department of Special Investigation (DSI) have arrested the suspect, Ko Myo after one of his aides was captured on 31 July.

The EJF is a non-profit NGO which, among other objectives, aims to protecting human rights and to promoting sustainable fishing practices and the effective conservation of marine ecosystems. With the report, it is prompting the EU to meet labour standards set for workers in the fishing industry.

The organization is trying to eradicate human trafficking practices from the Thai seafood production industry urging all producers to take action and work together to make this happen.

Related article:

- EJF calls for fisheries stakeholders to fight human trafficking

By Gabriela Raffaele
[email protected]
www.seafood.media

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