Three charged with luring Thais on to fishing boats in Indonesia
Angsuma Sridokkham
Piyanut Tumnukasetchai,
Prapasri Osathanon
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- THREE PEOPLE have been arrested for their alleged involvement in luring Thais to work on fishing boats in Indonesia, Pol General Ake Angsananont, deputy national police chief, said yesterday.

Ake said the crime fell under the category of human trafficking. Police had gathered evidence, issued seven arrest warrants and dispatched five teams to search the boat owner's company and workers' living quarters in Songkhla province where the |three suspects were apprehended, he said.

They were Amorn Thongma, 50, Prawit Singlek, who is in his 20s, and Nattaya Thongma, 30, he said.

Last week, 69 Thai fishing-boat workers were brought back to Thailand after they were arrested for encroaching into Indonesian waters and detained in Pontianak, West Kalimantan province for six months. Of these, 39 were initially deemed to be victims of human trafficking.

Pavena Hongsakul, chairwoman of the Pavena Foundation for Children and Women, who brought the 39 workers to hear the progress of the probe at the police press conference, said the workers would give additional information later yesterday.

She said police now believed that 14 workers were human-trafficking victims, while the rest didn't get paid in full. Some of them were paid 20 per cent of what they were promised and some did not get paid at all.

Pavena said the foundation would proceed to help another batch of 13 Thais in Indonesia to return home.

Later yesterday, Pavena accompanied the 39 workers to apply for the witness protection programme and seek help at the Rights and Liberties Protection Department (RLPD). She claimed that many especially those living in the South near alleged traffickers lived in fear of being threatened.

Narat Sawettanat, chief of the RLPD, said those entitled to join the witness protection programme must be able to prove that they were threatened, and they would have to testify in court and strictly follow the officials' conditions.

He said the witness protection programme would also provide allowances: up to Bt800 per day for accommodation, Bt200 per day for meals, and Bt200 per day for compensation for loss of income from work.

However, Narat said the crime of human trafficking was not yet included in the Compensation and Expenses for the Accused in Criminal Case Act for financial aid.

Meanwhile, Pornphetch Wichit-cholchai, president of the National Legislative Assembly, yesterday affirmed that it had passed laws to tackle human trafficking and sex crimes against children and youth. Four or five more laws would soon be tabled for the NLA's consideration, he said, and he believed that the global community would understand Thailand's serious attempts to solve such problems.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Three-charged-with-luring-Thais-on-to-fishing-boat-30265846.html


-- The Nation 2015-08-04

Maybe things are finally moving in the right direction? Keep up the good work!

Sanctions are the only way to stop this. Already this appauling situation is finally reaching the international newspapers

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/aug/01/slave-ships-papua-new-guinea-hunt-burmese-men-trawler

Am I to believe laws against these crimes have only been passed recently. Better late than never.

Sanctions are the only way to stop this. Already this appauling situation is finally reaching the international newspapers

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/aug/01/slave-ships-papua-new-guinea-hunt-burmese-men-trawler

Interesting article, and the following comments which are (or should be) even more interesting.

Brian Roberts

1d ago

01

How disgusting. Looks like I'll not be buying seafood from Thailand ever again. Don't think that retailers that sell it don't know what's going on either. They are rapping our oceans. I think the boat captains should face the death penalty honestly.

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Kyllein MacKellerann Brian Roberts

9h ago

01

How can you tell where a can or frozen package came from? Short of invasion, the Thais aren't going to change.

And Indonesian waters are little better since a number of political figures get bribes from the Thais.

Find out what fish the Thai's sell, then don't eat it. That is about all you can do.

It seems the word is out, and Thailand really ought to take notice.

But it won't, These are just more people who 'don't understand' Thailand.

why were the thais overthere ? tourists? or illegal working ?

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