Bangkok – Human Rights Watch, an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights, recently issued an assessment of Thailand’s fishing industry. The report claimed that forced labor and human trafficking persists in Thai fishing fleets, and concluded that the European Union should issue a yellow card for Thailand’s negligence in combating illegal fishing.
In response, Thai Ambassador to Belgium Manasvi Srisodapol delivered a statement citing the Kingdom’s efforts to pass legislation on worker protection. According to the statement, the report mainly relied on information from 2016 and made references as old as from 2012, which no longer reflect the current situation.
The ambassador urged Human Rights Watch to form unbiased assessments based on up-to-date information and argued that problems in the labor sector require time and concerted efforts by all stakeholders to resolve. He affirmed the government’s commitment in addressing the country’s labor sector in all dimensions.
