Picture: Siam Rath

 

Top cop Pol Gen Surachate Hakpan, known universally as Thailand's Big Joke, flew in with his entourage to Mae Sot in the north western Tak province.

 

He was there to check up on developments in a case where Myanmar factory workers had complained of working in conditions akin to slave labor, 8 am to 11pm, 99 hours a week, no benefit or holidays.

 

Picture: Siam Rath

Their case was taken up by various authorities in 2020 and the police say that ultimately the courts will decide over 5 million baht in compensatory payments to 136 workers, reported Siam Rath. 

 

Surachate was happy with what he heard about the police investigation and was pictured smiling on the phone as officers at the table chuckled.

 

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Another PR exercise and a wasted journey except for a photo call

Ask the workers if they are happy , governments are always happy with what they’ve done , the people ain’t ,usually.

He got the broom out, lifted the carpet and neatly swept the slave labor complaints under the rug. Job done, photo op time now.

21 hours ago, webfact said:

He was there to check up on developments in a case where Myanmar factory workers had complained of working in conditions akin to slave labor, 8 am to 11pm, 99 hours a week, no benefit or holidays.

 

21 hours ago, webfact said:

Their case was taken up by various authorities in 2020 and the police say that ultimately the courts will decide over 5 million baht in compensatory payments to 136 workers

So it was true then... but still waiting two years for the outcome?

What happened to the factory owner... nothing I guess?

17 hours ago, Scouse123 said:

Another PR exercise and a wasted journey except for a photo call

I'm sure the factory workers don't share your thoughts, at least it's still getting much needed media coverage after waiting two years.

48 minutes ago, hotchilli said:

I'm sure the factory workers don't share your thoughts, at least it's still getting much needed media coverage after waiting two years.

Everything seems to get media coverage and then the authorities just wait for the blaze of publicity to die down and then everything goes back to the ' same old, same old ' and nothing changes except the anguish suffered and hopes of those suffering. It's a tried and trusted formula by the RTP and it usually works when the public lose interest.

 

The people right at the top of all this foul play and greed are very powerful in this country and they know the ' game ' back to front unfortunately.

 

Slightly different but a similar topic,there is currently a docuseries running on Netflix which highlights the suffering and slave labour taking place right now in Thailand but on the seas in the Gulf of Thailand and beyond.

 

It features about workers beaten, 100 hours a week, ID and passports removed, guys held in chains and beaten. The programme is called Seaspiracy.