You are involved with fish slavery crimes, and you can be punished also

There is still crude slavery in Indonesia to the weak and innocent citizens usually from Myanmar, one of the poorest country. You might think that you are not related with this bad news but, you can be the one who takes advantage of some of poorest and weakest people in the world. This is because their laborious outcome of fishery is supplied to the big markets like Walmart, Safeway, Kroger, Albertsons and many pet food brands. Workers in Indonesia severely suffer for slavery for your dinner table or for your pet’s meal. According to the investigation, many workers seem to live in worse condition than any other animal in the world. Many of them only allowed to sleep one or two hours a day, they are hurt by the toxic marine lives while they are working, they cannot eat enough food and water, they have to work under the extreme weather condition which is below the zero Celsius degree without sufficient coat or work clothes, and they also live in the jail. Some of them died and some killed by oneself because of this harsh condition. But, the owners of them doesn’t care about it.

Kyaw Naing, a slave from Myanmar, looks through the bars of a cell at the compound of a fishing company in Benjina, Indonesia, Nov. 27, 2014. Kyaw Naing has since returned home to Myanmar. (AP Photo)

You are at the end point of this terrible links. Demands of fishes in rich countries also contribute to big markets to import fishes by cheap price. As a result, these corporations purchase them from Thailand and Indonesia. To earn money, Brokers offer each slaves about 1,000 dollars to local companies like Pusaka Benjina Resources. Those companies use slaves to make more profit and sell fishes more competitive price in the market. This is why whole things going worse and worse. As I pointed, the consumers which is usually in the rich countries also have responsibility even they know about this fact or not. This is because they can have fishes more reasonable price thanks to slavery forces. It’s same with other middle links which are take advantages of fish slavery. Although you don’t get legal pressure, I believe that you cannot avoid the fact that you are involved with this black links. Can you neglect punishment of your conscience?

The other links cannot solve this problem. Only public power can successively reduce slavery by making this as world issue. If it become a giant issue, then other links will move backwards to recover slavery problem. For this, media have to broadcast this brutal slavery and the responsibility of each links of slavery owners, local company which use slaves, big markets which buy slavery fishes, governments of some country and common people who are consumers. Also people who feel responsibility have to press other links the duty through the SNS.

To begin with, government, the key arbiter which have official power to the illegal problems, cannot deal with this problem. This is attributed to the fact that the matter of responsibility is cloudy. First, governments of countries which importing the fishes from Indonesia and Thailand don’t related with slavery. For example, U.S. government doesn’t have reasons to take care about this problem. The direct fault which commit illegal things is to the local company and slave brokers. Second, Indonesia authorities also don’t have to solve this problem. This is due to the reason that the slaves are usually from Myanmar. There are no disadvantages for Indonesian economy and citizens. Even they make new regulations for the workers, slaves are usually illegal immigrants which Indonesian laws cannot protect. Third, poorest Myanmar government seems that it doesn’t have ability to protect their people. They cannot solve complicate problem which is also related with fish mafia and corrupted government officials in Indonesia. It seems that none of government will solve slavery problem.

In addition, Huge corporations, another important link, also don’t need to think about slavery fishes deep if there is no special threaten to their profit. And they don’t import clear slavery fishes. They just purchase fished which could be mixed with those.

However, public opinion will make entire link to backwards to remove the slavery by moving if consumers realized that they are slavery products. They will boycott those materials. Then companies would try to remove those fishes and prove that they don’t use controversial fishes to survive. This will affect to Thailand fish market also. If they don’t supply normal fishes, corporations could find another fish market. To survive, they also try to remove slavery fishes. Reduction of demand for slavery fish will reduce slavery in fishery.

Furthermore, People will complain to the government and ask to many NGOs and UN which protect human rights to solve this problem. Public pressure will urge government, other associations and authorities to perform. This will push Thailand and Indonesian government also. They will start to remove slavery for themselves.

Burmese fishermen raise their hands as they are asked who among them wants to go home at the compound of Pusaka Benjina Resources fishing company in Benjina, Aru Islands, Indonesia, on Friday. (DITA ALANGKARA/AP)

In the last, Famous media, Associated Press, already made successive outcome to solve the matter. After the work of AP, about 2,000 of people are freed. Thanks to the media, this unfair aspect of fish chain discovered to the public and people moved with justice. This shows the power of media and the public is the effective way for this.

Burmese fisherman Myat Ko Ko Lay is congratulated by others as he leaves the port town of Ambon, Maluku province, Indonesia, Sept. 8, 2015. Ko Lay was tricked into working on a fishing boat by traffickers and had been in Indonesia for more than a year when he was rescued. (AP PHOTO / ACHMAD IBRAHIM)

Although, many people could feel that they don’t have responsibility, It is clear that they are at the top of the fish chain. Even if we are not directly caused this problem, we should look back our global family who are suffer from some of bad power owners and what is the outcome of our abundant consuming. It can be the story of our nation also. We have to delete these criminals for self-profit for us and our descendants. If we derived out slavery in Indonesia, similar cases cannot settle in the world. The importance of the public power cannot be underestimated that it can protect ourselves and other families in the world. It’s the only way which can solve awful slavery. A large number of people’s lives are under our hands.

rescued slave returned to home

Short Essay of me after reading AP Investigation: Are slaves catching the fish you buy?

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