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Freedom2014: Our World: Thailand’s Slave Fishermen

BBC World News will screen a doco on Thailand’s Slave Fishermen as part of its season on the state of freedom all over the world.

IMG_0438BBC World News program Our World will screen a documentary Thailand’s Slave Fishermen this weekend as part of Freedom2014, a season of investigative work looking at the state of freedom today all over the world.

Freedom2014 runs on BBC World News from January-April 2014.

Thailand is the third biggest exporter of fish on the planet and much of the catch from its fishing boats supplies supermarkets in Europe, America and Japan. Yet the industry stands accused of profiting from slave labour.

For a special Our World programme, Becky Palmstrom investigates this tale of modern day slavery. She travels to Thailand and Burma, also known as Myanmar, to find out why and how illegal migrants are being forced onto Thai fishing boats, many of them working for months unpaid.

In Thailand, Becky hears disturbing stories – from Burmese crewmen on the Thai fishing boats, from captains and boat owners – allegations of cruelty and even murder.

Becky then meets Ken, originally from rural Burma, he had hoped to make a better life for himself and his ageing parents, but ended up being trafficked onto Thai fishing boats. The conditions were so bad that he risked his life to escape by jumping overboard and swimming for six hours before being pulled out of the water.

Sadly, after his miraculous escape he was tricked onto another fishing boat amid promises of a job in a pineapple processing factory. However, after six weeks Ken and the rest of the Burmese crew were rescued by a non-governmental organisation and a special branch of the Thai police.

Later Becky travels to a remote village back in Burma, where she is able to inform Ken’s parents, who had not heard from their son for four years, that he is safe.

The Thai government is under increasing pressure – particularly from the US State Department – to improve its record on human trafficking, and it insists it is now making every effort to clamp down on trafficking and forced labour in its fishing industry.

However, as the team discover, it seems there is a long way to go before consumers can be certain the fish they eat hasn’t been caught by slaves.

Saturday 25th January at 07.30, 22:30 (AEDT)
Monday 27th January at 09.30 (AEDT) on BBC World News

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