Bangkok (AsiaNews) – Bangkok is the “international hub for human trafficking, “a Catholic source, anonymous for security reasons, told AsiaNews. This is “due to the complicity of senior police and military officials.”
“Major interests are behind this,” the source explained. “A woman sold as a prostitute can be worth 200,00 bath (US$ 5,650) in New York. Only a few victims manage to free themselves and return home whey they are older and no longer desirable. When they come back, they have to survive on little. Some Italians are involved on some routes.”
Last Sunday, Thai Prime Minister Prayut Cahn-o-cha celebrated the Stop Human Trafficking Day, which saw the participation of some 30 anti-human trafficking NGOs. The General gave prizes to journalists who covered the tragedy of women sold into prostitution to foreign buyers and workers abducted and treated as slaves.
Despite promises by the authorities, the source said, "everything is as before. We hope that reforms will follow words, but until now we have not seen much in the fight against the scourge of human trafficking."
The prime minister called on "the government, the people and civil society to unite in the fight against human trafficking". However, the problem is rooted in “social inequality and poverty. This forces some people to earn more money and become accomplices in this traffic.” What we need is cooperation to “uncover the whole international network, from country of origin to country of destination”.
The general has authorised the Ministry of Justice to increase the penalties for offenses relating to human trafficking.
In his speech, Prayut Chan-o-cha said that “the government is dealing with the issue at different levels, such as regularising the status of foreign workers, helping the homeless, and centralising the fight against illegal fishing.” Many workers are lured into the fishing industry where they are treated like slaves.
The prime minister said he was satisfied with the results achieved so far in the fight against corruption, stressing that "34 trials are currently underway against government, police, and military officials as well as local politicians, who have been suspended from office".
However, among civil society groups, most are sceptical about the policies adopted by the military junta (in power since 2014). "The prime minister boasts of having reformed every aspect of people's lives, punished the evildoers, and disciplined the military,” the source said; “however, the truth is that he cannot go against top military brass, because they are his backers.”
