PHUKET: Relevant agencies are confident that Thailand has made enough progress to avoid being downgraded on the US State Department's 2014 Trafficking In Persons (TIP) Report.
Representatives from the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security, the Royal Thai Police and related bodies addressed the press on Monday regarding the ongoing progress in combating human trafficking.
They said the Thai embassy in Washington DC, the US capital, said the country's progress in combating human trafficking is not only meaningfully greater than it was in previous years, but also greater than progress made by other countries previously upgraded in the US TIP report.
Thailand has made significant advances in combating human trafficking, working with partners at home and abroad including neighboring nations, the US, the EU, international organisations and NGOs to implement preventive measures, to protect and assist victims and to bring human traffickers to justice.
Thai law enforcement statistics show significant progress in investigations, prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators, including 674 trafficking investigations by Thai officials in 2013 - more than double the number of 306 similar investigations in 2012.
The statement from the embassy came after English newspaper 'The Guardian' accused Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF) of buying fishmeal which it feeds to its farmed prawns from some suppliers that own, operate or buy from fishing boats that are said to use slave labor.
The newspaper published an article on June 10, saying that illegal migrant workers who work in the fishing industry in Thailand are integral to the production of prawns sold in leading supermarkets around the world.
They also labeled Thailand's seafood industry as state-sanctioned slavery.
The Thai authorities have called the report unfounded and said it failed to capture the overall human-trafficking situation in the nation.
Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Sek Wannamethee, who was present at the meeting, said it is unlikely that the outcome of the TIP report will be affected by the allegations against CP, as only the progress made in 2013 and early 2014 will be included in their assessment of the situation.
Thailand has been ranked as a Tier 2 watch-list country for four consecutive years, and if no progress is reported in the past year, it may slip to Tier 3. If Thailand is demoted to Tier 3, certain trade privileges from the US will end.
Local agencies stressed that if, despite the odds, the kingdom is this year downgraded to tier 3 on the TIP report, they will continue to intensify their efforts based on the ''five Ps'' principle of persecution, protection, prevention, policy and partnership.
Representatives from the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security, the Royal Thai Police and related bodies addressed the press on Monday regarding the ongoing progress in combating human trafficking.
They said the Thai embassy in Washington DC, the US capital, said the country's progress in combating human trafficking is not only meaningfully greater than it was in previous years, but also greater than progress made by other countries previously upgraded in the US TIP report.
Thailand has made significant advances in combating human trafficking, working with partners at home and abroad including neighboring nations, the US, the EU, international organisations and NGOs to implement preventive measures, to protect and assist victims and to bring human traffickers to justice.
Thai law enforcement statistics show significant progress in investigations, prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators, including 674 trafficking investigations by Thai officials in 2013 - more than double the number of 306 similar investigations in 2012.
The statement from the embassy came after English newspaper 'The Guardian' accused Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF) of buying fishmeal which it feeds to its farmed prawns from some suppliers that own, operate or buy from fishing boats that are said to use slave labor.
The newspaper published an article on June 10, saying that illegal migrant workers who work in the fishing industry in Thailand are integral to the production of prawns sold in leading supermarkets around the world.
They also labeled Thailand's seafood industry as state-sanctioned slavery.
The Thai authorities have called the report unfounded and said it failed to capture the overall human-trafficking situation in the nation.
Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Sek Wannamethee, who was present at the meeting, said it is unlikely that the outcome of the TIP report will be affected by the allegations against CP, as only the progress made in 2013 and early 2014 will be included in their assessment of the situation.
Thailand has been ranked as a Tier 2 watch-list country for four consecutive years, and if no progress is reported in the past year, it may slip to Tier 3. If Thailand is demoted to Tier 3, certain trade privileges from the US will end.
Local agencies stressed that if, despite the odds, the kingdom is this year downgraded to tier 3 on the TIP report, they will continue to intensify their efforts based on the ''five Ps'' principle of persecution, protection, prevention, policy and partnership.
Would be interesting to read what significant advances have been made, backed up by hard facts in particular by independent groups not affiliated with Thailand.
The TIP report 2013, is grim reading for most that highlights a comprehensive account of human rights violations that exist in Thailand, and for most remain outstanding. The nature of many are indeed alarming to the outside world not seasoned to such violations, the nature of which only a heartless person could ignore.
Thailand has IMHO a long way to go before it can even consider being taken off the watch-list. For now it must make significant headway in combating this issue, though sadly for the moment it seems long way off.
Posted by reader on June 18, 2014 15:17