A group of 30 Cambodian men trafficked to work in the Thai fishing
industry arrived home today from eastern Indonesia with help from
IOM and the Indonesian authorities. A further 33 will return with
IOM on December 11th.

The repatriation of the group to Phnom Penh from Ambon was
organized by IOM with funding from IOM's Humanitarian Assistance to
Stranded Migrants Fund, the Global Assistance Fund (GAF) and the
Indonesian Immigration Department.

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"PADDING-BOTTOM: 3px; PADDING-LEFT: 3px; PADDING-RIGHT: 3px; BACKGROUND: rgb(51,102,204) 0% 50%; PADDING-TOP: 3px">Related
Link
alt="" border="0" height="12" hspace="0" src=
"/jahia/webdav/site/myjahiasite/shared/shared/mainsite/graphics/interface/icons_buttons/blue_link_box.gif"> "http://publications.iom.int/bookstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=41_7&products_id=720">Trafficking
of Fishermen in Thailand

The fishermen, who escaped from their captors when their boats
were forced to dock in Ambon, have been in the care of the
Indonesian immigration authorities since their escape. IOM has
provided them with food, medical services and other care.

Like thousands of others, they were recruited by agents in
Cambodia with promises of well-paid jobs in Thailand. On arrival in
Thailand, they were sold to fishing boat captains by brokers.

Trafficked fishermen are frequently forced to work long hours
and physically and psychologically abused. They are often unpaid
and forced to serve on voyages for months or even years. As they
have no documentation, they are often unable to seek protection
from the authorities in Thailand or abroad.

IOM Cambodia, through its network of partners, will provide
on-going assistance to all 63 fishermen to ensure their safe
reintegration back into home communities.

For more information on human trafficking in the Thai fishing
industry, please download an IOM report from: "paragraph-link-underlined" href=
"http://publications.iom.int/bookstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=41_7&products_id=720"
target=
"_blank">http://publications.iom.int/bookstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=41_7&products_id=720

For further information, please contact:

Nurul Qoiriah

IOM Indonesia

Tel: +84 9 03450196

E-mail: "mailto:infoindonesia@iom.int">infoindonesia@iom.int