BANGLADESHIS AND ROHINGYA BOATPEOPLE
KIDNAPPED BY HUMAN TRAFFICKING GANGS TO BE SOLD INTO SLAVERY
The figures of boatpeople recently discovered in captivity in Thailand reveal the extent of human trafficking between the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea.
In the space of three days, Thai authorities in Takuapa district discovered more than 130 suspected victims of human trafficking; on October 11th, 53 men were discovered on a rubber plantation. Two days later, a group of 79 men was discovered in a jungle clearing. This is in addition to the 636 people discovered in January and a further 37 found in September.
The two groups found in October were composed of Bangladeshis and Rohingya kidnapped in Bangladesh. There they were forcibly loaded into the hold of a fishing vessel and transported from Cox’s Bazaar on the south coast to Takuapa district on Thailand’s Andaman coast. In Thailand the victims were off-loaded, divided into groups and held in captivity in secret jungle camps. The boat on which they arrived was said to have carried at least 200 people, including women and children.
Read more: full case study HERE