Slavery at sea has Thailand teetering toward US sanctions
Patrick Winn

Obama administration urges crackdown on forced labor that supplies seafood to Americans.

BANGKOK, Thailand — Their condition recalls dark tales from the 18th century: underfed men lorded over by seafaring captains who pay them nothing and maim the disobedient.

Yet these forced labor abuses play out on Thai-owned fishing trawlers each day. And the victims — typically destitute men from Myanmar or Cambodia lured by coyotes full of false promises — continue to wash ashore with accounts of torture and casual homicide.

For years, US officials have urged Thailand, one of America’s closest Asian allies, to rid its $7.3 billion fisheries export industry of these abuses. Though carried out on lawless seas, these crimes risk entangling supermarkets in America, where one in six pounds of seafood is imported from Thailand.

So far, these persistent abuses have hurt Thailand’s reputation but little else. That may change: if one more year passes without major strikes against Thai trafficking syndicates, the US State Department will be forced, by law, to hit Thailand with sanctions.

For four years running, a US State Department annual “Trafficking in Persons” report has labeled Thailand with its next-to-worst ranking. This year’s report, released this week, painted a similarly bleak portrait of Thailand’s efforts to fix what the report called “pervasive trafficking-related corruption.” [more...]

Full story: http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/asia-pacific/thailand/130621/thailand-human-trafficking-us-state-department-sanctions-fish-export

-- global post 2013-06-24

Arrrrgh, rum , sodomy, and the lash. Where can I sign up?

Anyone surprised about this "Buddhist" nation?

Slavery on Thai fishing boats is straight from the 18th century

So is the electric grid

Anyone surprised about this "Buddhist" nation?

whats your point of bringing religion to it? need no to beat around the bush

The full report is here: http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/210742.pdf

Scroll down to find Thailand.

It's a problem which should be addressed ASAP but America should probably impose sanctions on itself too with about about 18,000 people trafficked to the U.S. each year, according to the State Department..

http://www.wgbhnews.org/post/human-trafficking-modern-day-slavery-america

And ofcourse all the upset and selfrightious posters here will stop buying and eating seafood??

Or not?

Slavery on Thai fishing boats is straight from the 18th century

..so...it is totally inline with the rest of the country?!

But my question would be: would it be any better from the 19th century?

Well, isn't most Thai laws and traditions still operating in the 18th century era. Give 'em time...Thailand will catch up...maybe.

Anyone surprised about this "Buddhist" nation?

whats your point of bringing religion to it? need no to beat around the bush

Maybe PaullyW was referring to this:

Succinctly put, Buddhism enunciates the end of suffering (Dukkha) through the elimination of ignorance (avidya) and the elimination of craving (tanha), and thus the attainment of the cessation of all suffering, known as the sublime state of nirvana.

Silaor Ethical conduct, is part of the umbrella/concept Four Noble Truths.

Obviously, Ethical Conduct, pertains wholly to the subject of slavery, not to mention corruption and Xenophobia.

Thailand "officially" abolished slavery in 1912 but, as history shows, the former slaves, still remained under the "care" of the masters. This gave way to the Thai phrase of Khon Chai: servant. But not a servant in the modern social notion of work for pay. Khon Chai was someone who would do anything the master ordered.

Before reacting emotionally to pointed comments, it would behoove all of us to do research and document our opinions.

Such behavior will lead to Samwag Wayama samma vayama: the making of an effort to improve.

See chart below, please!

Ethical conduct (Sanskrit: śīla, Pāli: sīla)

3. Right speech samyag vāc,sammā vāca Speaking in a truthful and non-hurtful way

4. Right action samyag karman, sammā kammanta Acting in a non-harmful way

5. Right livelihood samyag ājīvana, sammā ājīva A non-harmful livelihood

Anyone surprised about this "Buddhist" nation?

whats your point of bringing religion to it? need no to beat around the bush

He's right, PaullyW. That being said; Anyone surprised about this "Gargoyle-wearing, Gucci-Bag-toting, Jet-setting Buddhists" nation? "Was in Tuk Com the other day and saw three more of them pawing over iPads. But I digress...

Regarding the OP; I truly find this story very difficult to believe. It seems that fish stories really do originate with sailors on the open sea. All that horrible telling, and not even one regaling of mutiny. Hmmm.

Pretty soon some activist group in the USA will rise up and advocate a boycott of Thai seafood. Human rights organizations will initiate an attack on the Thai seafood, tuna fish trade and sales will sink. Then the Thais will come whining to the embassy that it's not their fault and promising all kinds of remedies. It's good old karma - what goes around comes around. Thais have been passing bad karma around in the seafood trade for a long time.

I dont know why anybody is worried about hurting Thailand's reputation.

Thailand doesnt have a reputation to start with.

Anything goes here.

The only things they probably dont do (anymore) in LOS are turkey shoots and snuff movies.

I could be wrong.

To me it looks like it's just the answer to the stupid idea of pig breeders to boycot imports of U.S pork meat...

interesting theres no focus on this by NGOs or CNN, only the so called 'sex slaves' need saving.... who are actually voluntary prostitutes 90% of the time, no matter their age. and even if they are not, at least they dont get shot in the sea. this needs more attention and exposure, and so does the hypocrisy of shameless NGOs.

I dont know why anybody is worried about hurting Thailand's reputation.

Thailand doesnt have a reputation to start with.

Anything goes here.

The only things they probably dont do (anymore) in LOS are turkey shoots and snuff movies.

I could be wrong.

Probe, ask and you will know the truth... maybe.

Walk around for a couple of days in Nana, Soi Cowboy, Pat-Pong, Pattaya and ask the patrons (not the BIB)...

You will then have a better answer to the question: Does Thailand have a reputation?

If America is so concerned about this issue then why do we keep doing business with them? Just like any nation, if they are hit at the bottom line they tend to be a bit more flexible and more conscious of the causes of the loss of income. There are many things in Thailand that are from the 18th century. One of these days the Thais are going to learn that being concerned with their reputation in lieu of being concerned with reality is not serving the government or their people well at all.

Anyone surprised about this "Buddhist" nation?

whats your point of bringing religion to it? need no to beat around the bush

He's right, PaullyW. That being said; Anyone surprised about this "Gargoyle-wearing, Gucci-Bag-toting, Jet-setting Buddhists" nation? "Was in Tuk Com the other day and saw three more of them pawing over iPads. But I digress...

Regarding the OP; I truly find this story very difficult to believe. It seems that fish stories really do originate with sailors on the open sea. All that horrible telling, and not even one regaling of mutiny. Hmmm.

Also pretty easy to criticize Christianity on many fronts.

this can be good publicity to tell the farmers or whatever, to stay in their country and work there...at least they might have "some" rights as we non thais have non ...we are all long stay tourists

If they push Rohinya's back on sea, better to take them onboard of a fish trawler and let them paint, fish, prepare food....at least the 'Buddhists' leave humans alive by doing so. Awful mentality. In the '70's Cambodian (Pol Pot era) refugees who knew to escape by boat via the Mekong to Thailand were first being robbed of all remaining possessions and abused by Thai fishers (pirates) before finding shelter.

And ofcourse all the upset and selfrightious posters here will stop buying and eating seafood??

Or not?

You ask the question and perhaps there is no particular issue within Thailand.But I assure you unless the Thai Government and seafood industry manage this problem intelligently there is a very real threat of an overseas boycott.It wouldn't kill the industry, not least because the supply chain is very complicated and it's very difficult to identify exactly what product is "Thai".But the public relations problem could be huge and there is every incentive for the Thais to clamp down hard on illegal and criminal behaviour within the industry.

Arrrrgh, rum , sodomy, and the lash. Where can I sign up?

Pattaya is a good starter

Imposition of Puritan morality

The other thing that bothers me is that you see this statement repeatedly in the report (across countries), this year and in past years: "The government did not make an effort to reduce the demand for

commercial sex acts during the year."

First of all, it's not clear to me how a government can reduce demand for commercial sex (rather than supply). Second, what gives the Americans the right to condemn 'commercial sex' between two free and consenting persons?? Absolutely ridiculous...

Anyone surprised about this "Buddhist" nation?

whats your point of bringing religion to it? need no to beat around the bush

He's right, PaullyW. That being said; Anyone surprised about this "Gargoyle-wearing, Gucci-Bag-toting, Jet-setting Buddhists" nation? "Was in Tuk Com the other day and saw three more of them pawing over iPads. But I digress...

Regarding the OP; I truly find this story very difficult to believe. It seems that fish stories really do originate with sailors on the open sea. All that horrible telling, and not even one regaling of mutiny. Hmmm.

What surprise me is the number of Thai Visa posters so willing to drag religion or Buddhism into every thing that is negative and not a word of it on positive points in Thailand.

And they think the Thai system of education is bad. I wonder what kind of education they got.

Wake up people religions and Buddhism do not do wrong it is the members in them that do wrong. the same goes for atheist's. What does an atheist blame his wrong doing on. "lack of religion"?

Slightly off-topic but related anyhow is the massive (ab)use of yaba on these ships.

If America is so concerned about this issue then why do we keep doing business with them?

Might write a letter to walmart about that dalsobrook

If America is so concerned about this issue then why do we keep doing business with them?

America = words words words... Don't take them too seriously please.

And ofcourse all the upset and selfrightious posters here will stop buying and eating seafood??

Or not?

I hate seafood and don't it anyway. revolting stuff and stinks.

Just waiting for the Thai government to announce a lawsuit against Obama for trying to tarnish Thailand's image...............