June 5, 2019 — Establishing full transparency in fisheries is crucial to ending the “vicious cycle of abuse” faced by workers in the catching sector, a new report compiled by the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) asserts.
The United Kingdom-based charity is also calling for the urgent ratification of international agreements designed to improve workers’ rights, vessel inspections, and enforcement.
According to EJF, there are direct links between declining fish stocks, illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, and serious human rights abuses in the catching sector. Its report, “Blood and water: human rights abuse in the global seafood industry,” also contends that the challenge is being further exacerbated by a growing demand for cheap seafood. These powerful economic forces have driven down profits in many fisheries and have led to the increased abuse of crews, said EJF.
The report documents cases of slavery, debt bondage, insufficient food and water, filthy living conditions, physical and sexual assault, and even murder aboard fishing vessels from 13 countries operating across three oceans. These included trafficked fishermen in the U.K. and Ireland, bonded labor in the United Arab Emirates fisheries, forced labor on U.S.-flagged vessels based in Hawaii, and workers tricked into working on Thai fishing boats by brokers and traffickers.