Thailand tolerates human trafficking, slavery and gross human rights violations. The country is a source, destination and transit country for men, women and children exposed to forced labor and sex trafficking.'
It annually Trafficking in Persons report from the US State Department, released Friday, makes no bones about it. Thailand is not making any progress in combating human trafficking (at least in 2013, as that is the year the report refers to) and therefore drops from the Tier 2 Watch List to the Tier 3 List, where it is joined by Syria, Iran and North Korea. The Gambia, Venezuela and Malaysia have also moved to that list.
For the past four years, Thailand has been on the Tier 2 list of countries that do not do enough about human trafficking, but are still given the opportunity to improve their lives. The Ministry of Justice and the Department of Special Investigation (DSI, Thailand's FBI) were hopeful this week and expected Thailand to be dropped from the Tier 2 list. Progress had been made in combating human trafficking, they believed.
Washington, however, thinks otherwise. "Unlike other countries on the list, efforts to enforce anti-trafficking laws remain inadequate compared to the magnitude of the problem in Thailand," the report said. "Corruption at all levels has hampered the success of these efforts."
Contrary to what I wrote earlier, trade sanctions are not possible under the report, but limited sanctions can be taken against Thailand, starting October 1. Under US law, Washington must now oppose Thailand's requests for help from the World Bank or the International Monetary Fund. President Obama has the power to lift sanctions if he believes that US-Thailand ties are "in the national interest."
Thailand may also be indirectly affected by international consumers boycotting suspect Thai products. This is especially true for fishery products, which are sold in the US and Europe.
Last year's report advised Thailand to track down victims of trafficking and enforce anti-trafficking laws more strictly. The National Anti-Corruption Commission was encouraged to investigate reports of government officials involved in human trafficking.
The report comes at an extremely unfortunate time for Thailand, as 200.000 Cambodian migrants have fled the country for fear of a roundup. Many of them are reported to be victims of human trafficking.
Rumors of an imminent raid have been spread by "influential figures and corrupt officials," according to leader Prayuth. They can then collect 20.000 baht per worker to mediate their return to Thailand and they also extort an amount of 8.000 to 10.000 baht from each worker after they have arrived. Prayuth said this in his weekly TV address on Friday. He announced that the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) will act quickly against those people.
Illegal workers are allowed to remain in the country temporarily while the junta works on long-term solutions, Prayuth said. These include registration and verification of their nationality. Shelters will be formed to provide aid, including to the stateless Muslim Rohingya, who have fled persecution in Myanmar.
(Source: Website bangkok mail, June 20, 2014, supplemented with data from this morning's newspaper.)
Photo homepage: These Thai women were lucky. They were able to return safely to Thailand after being forced into prostitution in Bahrain.
“…Photo homepage: These Thai women were lucky. They were able to safely return to Thailand after being forced into prostitution in Bahrain….”
Good to hear that Bahrain is also on that list! However ? Or am I reading that wrong?
But that something is wrong in Thailand with employees from foreign countries, yes, and with refugees too. It's high time something was done about it. Oh, and then let them immediately enforce compliance with the minimum wage rules. It's too often "for you ten others" in this country.
You can find the report here:
http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2014/index.htm
There is also a web (HTML) page with the score, Bahrain is on “Tier 2 Watch List”.
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Tier 3
Algeria
Central African Republic
Congo, Democratic Rep. Or
Cuba
Equatorial Guinea
eritrea
The gambia
Guinea-Bissau
Iran
Korea, North
Kuwait
libya
Malaysia*
Mauritania
Papua New Guinea
Russia
Saudi Arabia
Syria
Thailand*
Uzbekistan
Venezuela*
Yemen
Zimbabwe
* Auto downgrade from Tier 2 Watch List
----
Source:
http://m.state.gov/md226649.htm
All this is unfortunately true, it can and should be better, but it will not be
that (given the situation now in Thailand) USA now wants to look for something everywhere to portray Thailand negatively?
I think that's all sham Ger. America needs Thailand as a base to China and North Korea, should it ever be needed. This is camouflage.
Ah yes, Amurrica, the great cop. Defender of human rights worldwide. Holder of prisons full of people who have never seen a court, Country that in sovereign countries with which they are not even at war, bombs cars and people from drones without those people ever seeing a court.
Yes, human rights are of paramount importance to them. If it suits you.
Good thing those guys targeted by those drones care so much about human rights, isn't it Tyler?
That's why I sent a post this week about how things are going in our beloved Thailand.
Was about foreigners being transported in trucks like cattle.
Own eyewitness last year , so not hearsay .
Sorry, couldn't get through moderation.
I understand this , fear of fierce discussions on this web blog .
There is a lot wrong with human rights in Thailand.
The foreign workers here from Cambodia and Burma just work like slaves.
But who is interested, as long as we can go on holiday and hibernate for 3 months in a beautiful bungalow, preferably with a swimming pool.
And the people here are so hospitable.
Jan Beute.
That's right, commenting on Thailand is not appreciated, which is why a response that talks about Ämurrica also receives so much support, without actually coming up with substantiated counterarguments. After all, the image of the land of smiles must be upheld for the neo settlers who live in Thailand in a villa with a swimming pool and drive around in an expensive 4×4, meanwhile claim to live like a real, average Thai. It can sometimes hurt those many pensioners that the country they praise to the sky, could also have negatives. But yes, if the lie is told often enough, it will automatically become the truth.
There is a lot wrong with human rights in Thailand.
But how many countries are there in the world where human rights are good?
No more than a handful.
And in those countries too, your human rights are worth a lot less if you have attracted the attention of an intelligence service for one reason or another.
Then America must be very pleased with the junta that it has overthrown the government that was in power in those years.
However???
strange that America itself is not in that list, but yes they have had butter on their heads for years, everyone does everything wrong except the Americans themselves, that is why they are so loved in the world
America is not in tier 3, because it is in tier 1.
That says something about the credibility of those lists.
Tier 1
Countries whose governments fully comply with the Trafficking Victims Protection Act's (TVPA) minimum standards.
Not only human rights are seriously violated, but everything is also copied, from watches, DVDs, CDs, perfumes, clothes, etc. But if we can buy everything cheaply and enjoy the slave labor.
I think you're confusing 2 things here Edgar. If you think that expensive branded items have that price because they are made by people who are paid decently, then you are really wrong. Look at the very expensive Apple iPhones that are assembled by exploited Chinese factory workers.
If something unnecessarily widens the gap between rich and poor, it is copy-right. Making stuff that can be accessible to everyone only accessible to people who can pay too much, that's what copy right does. People still die every day because of the same laws because copyright still rests on medicines that can therefore be produced cheaper, but are not allowed to be manufactured cheaply for profit reasons.
In my view, copyright infringement is more of a blessing than a curse; something that can certainly not be said of human rights violations. In fact, you could even say that protecting copyright actually promotes a violation of human rights!
I would just like to say that I have nothing against criticism of Thailand. I agree with Ruud. There is enough wrong in Thailand, and probably also with human rights. Take, for example, the ban on criticism of the junta, and the situation surrounding lèse-majesté.
I just wanted to point out that it is rather shocking that a wealthy country, which is demonstrably violating human rights on a massive scale, both at home and abroad, has the audacity to look past that beam in their own eye and put that mote in the eye of another. a poor country like Thailand.