Labour Minister Mr. Suchart Chomklin assigned Police Major General Nantachat Supamongkol from the Office of the Prime Minister’s Secretariat performing duties for the Ministry of Labour to visit Surat Thani to inspect the protection of workers in marine fishing vessels at the marina port of the Marine Division 6, Surat Thani Water Police Division. He met with employees, employers, and related sectors in driving government policies on preventing and solving human trafficking to be upgraded to Tier 1 in accordance with international standards and the International Labour Organization.
On March 11, 2021, Labour Minister Mr. Suchart Chomklin assigned Police Major General Nantachat Supamongkol from the Office of the Prime Minister’s Secretariat performing duties for the Ministry of Labour to inspect the protection of workers in marine fishing vessels at the marina port of the Marine Division 6, Surat Thani Water Police Division, Surat Thani. Police Major General Nantachat said that the government, under the leadership of Prime Minister and Minister of Defense General Prayuth Chan-ocha and the supervision of Deputy Prime Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan, is focused on driving the policy to prevent and eliminate illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, and to raise the level of human trafficking prevention and mitigation to Tier 1 to meet international standards and the International Labour Organization.
Police Major General Nantachat said that today, Labour Minister Mr. Suchart Chomklin had assigned him and his committee to Surat Thani to inspect workers’ protection in fishing vessels. He also visited and listened to the performance report problems and obstacles regarding sea fishing workers and met with employees, employers, and other stakeholders in driving government policies to prevent and tackle human trafficking. They inspected five fishing boats as follows: 1. The Chok Supachat 9, sized at 52.94 gross tons. There were11 crew members, consisting of 2 Thai and 9 Cambodian people. 2. The Chok Supachat 3, sized at 36.65 gross tons. There were 11 crew members consisting of 3 Thai people and 8 Cambodian people. 3. The Chok Supachart, sized 36.93 gross tons. There were ten crew members consisting of 2 Thai people and 8 Cambodian people. 4. The Chok Supachat 29, sized 37.03 gross tons. There were 12 crew members consisting of 2 Thai and 10 Cambodian people. 5. The Thanakorn 8, sized 51.17 gross tons. There were five crew members consisting of one Thai and 4 Burmese people. On this occasion, he emphasized the government’s policy to prevent and tackle human trafficking to the workers, employers, and employees on fishing vessels, in particular, regarding the provision of welfare, clean and hygienic food, and drinking water, toilets, medical supplies, and medicine for first-aid use, to ensure sufficient numbers to suit the work and life on the boat. He instructed employers to educate employees about working conditions, how to use tools, protective equipment, and safety in work to have good health while living on the boat and check the availability of safety equipment on the ship before work.
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Division of Public Relations
11 March 2021
