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The lawless seas are some of the few places terrible crimes can go unnoticed. Because “no one is required to report violent crimes committed in international waters,” thousands of sea-travelers die each year from murders and modern slavery.

One of the worst offenders has been the Dona Liberta, a 370-foot cargo ship notorious for misconduct. This refrigerator ship routinely abused, cheated, and abandoned its crew, caused a 100-mile long oil slick, violated countless environmental laws, left debts unpaid, and still managed to operate freely. “In the maritime world, it’s far easier for countries to look the other way with problem ships like the Dona Liberta than to do something about them,” a retired U.S. Coast Guard commander said. Many other vessels like the Dona Liberta prove how weak and ineffective ship regulation laws are, which causes a huge problem for human trafficking.

Thousands of stowaways endure dreadful living conditions on ships to try and find work, in search of a better life. Roughly 2,000 of them are caught each year, after suffering from dehydration, starvation, and exhaustion. They say it is “jail with a salary,” except a salary is rarely granted.

Crew members of the Dona Liberta frequently begged for help, and reported the harsh conditions, wages, and mistreatment they endured. The captain would lie and never transfer money he promised to his workers, leaving all of them with nothing. Despite their desire to leave the ship, many stayed for the small chance that they would receive what was promised to them. Unfortunately, this happens on many different ships, and more than 2,300 seafarers have been stranded by their employers in the past decade.

The Dona Liberta is a prime example of how difficult it is to investigate crimes that occur at sea. With limited technology and the constant changing of crew members, witnesses are hard to come by. “The rules on land, though, often conflict with the realities at sea. Captains are prohibited from jettisoning stowaways, but they are blocked or fined if they bring them to shore.” When faced with these problems, most captains take the easy, unethical way out and force their stowaways overboard. Ultimately, the crimes committed at sea are getting worse and need to be addressed.

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Source: The New York Times

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Malaysia is an object of contention amongst US officials, after reports claim they will be upgraded to the Human Trafficking Tier 2 Watch List. This is a significant improvement for Malysia due to the fact that they earned a Tier 3 rating last year. This substandard rating is the lowest a country can receive in the United States’ assessment of human trafficking in other countries. Although the U.S. recognizes their recent efforts to combat this inhumane crime, certain officials have had a different view on the matter and expressed their opinions publicly.

US Senator, Bob Menendez states, “The deplorable human trafficking crisis in Malaysia merits a global cry for action and justice — not an attempt to sweep them under the rug for political expediency.”

In the past year Malysia has made an attempt to dissolve human trafficking rings but have only made a meniscal dent in the matter. Most recently, abandoned jungle camps for hosting captives was discovered. These camps included pens to confine hostages and more than 100 graves for those unable to endure the oppressive living conditions.

Despite disagreement, Malysia will be moved to the watch list next week during John Kerry’s U.S. global government assessment.

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Source: Associated Press

More than 200 witnesses/victims have been placed into witness protection programs in Thailand after receiving death threats and intimidating visits from criminal organizations suspected to be involved in human trafficking. Police investigations have led to members of the trafficking networks taking desperate measures to keep the witnesses quiet.

The location of the 236 witnesses/victims will remain private until the suspects are charged and the case goes to trial. 56 people have been arrested since Thailand’s anti-trafficking campaign began, and another 21 suspects are being pursued.

In just two months, police have seized assets worth over $5.9 million dollars belonging to human traffickers. Over 4 million baht (over $118,000 dollars), were seized from Thai Army General Manas Kongpaen, the highest ranking person arrested.

Many police officers, local officials, and a former president are facing human trafficking charges. “Thai officials have been implicated by rights groups as colluding with human smugglers who have been preying on migrants — many of whom are Rohingya fleeing persecution described by some human rights groups as ‘state sponsored’ in Myanmar.“

Indonesia and Malaysia have taken in most of the 7,000 Rohingya Muslims and Bangladeshis, but Thailand refuses to offer them housing. Their navy provides them with food and water before turning their vessels back to sea.

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Source: Andolu Agency

The issue of forced migrant labor in Thailand can be heavily attributed to its location. Thailand’s borders include Laos and Cambodia — two deeply impoverished countries — as well as Malaysia, a popular migrant destination. It also falls directly in line with the sea-routes commonly used for smuggling operations in Myanmar and Bangladesh. Ultimately, Thailand is a prime source, destination, and transition country for modern slavery.

In addition to geography, Thailand’s trafficking problems can be due to the excessive political influence of its security services. “In particular the weakness of the Thai political system in tackling the trade can be tied to military interference in the central government, the convergence of corruption with geography in the north and on the southern borders, and the presence of a separatist insurgency in Thailand’s southeastern border provinces.”

On the southeastern border of Thailand, tackling local Islamic terrorist groups frequently takes priority over fighting organized crime. Based on the number of migrant camps found recently, the heavy military and police presence in those areas proves no obstacle to smuggling. Human trafficking routes still exist in Songkhla province, a Thai-Malay area, as well as in its neighboring provinces of Yala, Pattani, and Narathiwat. “In fact there is widespread social collusion with the people-smuggling trade in many isolated areas, with trafficking groups often able to rely on collaboration with both coastal and border communities for their infrastructure, local camp guards, and supplies.”

Sadly, this includes an area’s authorities as well. In the past, Thai security services and local officials have been taken into custody for helping human trafficking groups and selling fleeing refugees and detained migrants back into slavery.

Bangkok’s initiative to start intercepting smuggling boats created a high profile on human trafficking which led to the discovery of more smuggling camps with even more graves. Many criminal networks across the country have been abandoned or disrupted, but the demand for forced labor will most likely adapt and restart. Longstanding American political pressure is the only reason human trafficking became an issue for the central authorities in Thailand in the first place.

Contingent with Thailand’s preoccupation with designing a new constitution, many people realize that something must be done about human trafficking, but most are wishing that the issue will disappear quickly and quietly.

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Source: The Diplomat

In order to put an end to forced labor in Asia, more funding and better data on supply chains is needed. Recent findings, regarding the Thai fishing industry, have shed light on the abuses and dangers migrant workers face as part of the $7 billion dollar trafficking industry.

Last year, the United States downgraded Thailand to the lowest “Tier 3” status, deeming it one of the world’s worst centers of human trafficking. “Campaigners said a lack of data on suppliers and contractors meant companies and financial institutions could become unwitting participants in slavery.”

The Freedom Fund, an anti-slavery private donor fund, plans to spend $5 million dollars on developing new tools, in an effort to boost supply chain transparency. Hopefully, this and recent media exposure, will lead to more global companies and producers attempting to tackle forced labor.

“When buyers put pressure on suppliers to stop abuses they can effect change much faster, even in as little as 48 hours,” said Benjamin Skinner, co-founder of Tau Investment Management, a private equity firm that aims to clean up supply chains.

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Leading financial institutions in Europe have decided to combat human trafficking by using data to detect suspicious transactions that could be linked to criminal activity. Europol, the European Union’s policing agency, is taking the initiative to help financial institutions implement “red flag” indicators that scan their systems and report irregular banking transactions to the police.

This drive to end modern slavery is due to concerns about the increasing multi-billion pound business that is being run by increasingly dangerous gangs. Rob Wainwright, the director of Europol, said, “we see the problems getting much worse in terms of number of victims, illegal money that is being used, and the way in which organized crime groups are using more sophisticated techniques to recruit people, transport and exploit them.”

The European Bankers Alliance, similar to the U.S. Bankers Alliance, hopes to achieve the same goal of detecting more suspicious activity and increasing the number of trafficking transactions reported. “Human trafficking has become a fast-growing crime worth about $150 billion a year, according to the International Labour Organisation, with an estimated 36 million people trapped in sex slavery, forced or bonded labour, or other forms of servitude.”

Wainwright said the free movement of people in Europe makes it harder to spot trafficking, but that access to data shared by financial institutions will help identify and efficiently bring traffickers to justice.

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