BANGKOK, Aug 12 (TNA) — Eighteen Thai fishing crew members who were rescued from Somalia expressed their gratitude to the government through the labour minister who in return encouraged Thai workers to find overseas jobs through legal channels.
Labour Minister Chatu Mongol Sonakul welcomed the 18 Thai workers who safely returned from Somalia. They arrived at Suvarnabhumi airport at 6.30am this morning. They had been left unpaid aboard a fishing boat off the Bosaso coast of Somalia, lacking food.
The labour minister said that they were among 42 Thai fishing crew members who worked for an Iranian employer on two boats. Twenty-two of them worked aboard Wadani 1 boat and 20 others on Wadani 2 boat. Four workers on Wadani 1 returned to Thailand earlier. They did not inform the Labour Ministry of their overseas work.
The Employment Department and the Department of Social Development and Welfare provided the 18 workers with accommodations and transport to their home provinces. Six of them came from Surin province, eight from Buri Ram, two from Phetchabun and one each from Samut Sakhon and Chaiyaphum. Officials questioned them to prepare legal action against their human trafficker that had smuggled them out of the country and left them in suffering conditions.
One of the workers, Thanakorn Chararam said he had been promised with a 15,000-baht salary but actually received only 5,000 baht a month for only two months.
The workers identified their job broker only as Sia Chang. (TNA)
