Hoping for a brighter future, Maung Htay left Burma when he was just a teenager. He is now 42, but his dream is still far from realized. He is still impoverished and has lost all contact with his parents after more than 20 years of working in Thailand.
Maung Htay’s long journey has had its ups and downs. He has worked on construction sites and at a timber factory, and was imprisoned as a slave on the high seas.
About six years ago, while working at a construction site in a Thai border town, Maung Htay was arrested by Thai police during a raid cracking down on illegal migrant workers. He was taken from the site and detained.
A Burmese broker, Naing Oo, paid a fine of 3,000 baht (US$85) to the police in exchange for Maung Htay’s release, promising him a good job. Maung Htay was delighted by the offer, but the job never materialized. He quickly realized that his release from jail actually meant he had been sold to a human trafficking gang and was being sent to work as a slave on a fishing boat in Indonesian waters.
Maung Htay is one of thousands of modern-day Burmese who have been held captive and made to work as slaves by traders in the ocean off Thailand and Indonesia.
“I worked days and nights, in the rain, in the heat and in the storm,” Maung Htay said in a telephone interview. “We were not fed sufficiently. We had to work even [when] we were injured and sick. They gave no medicine and treatments. Sick people who couldn’t work got shot.”
He said he witnessed at least 15 fishermen being tortured and shot by captains and crewmembers because they were sick and asking for medicine. The men’s bodies were thrown into the sea.
“I was very sad seeing my colleagues killed. But I could do nothing except feel sad. They have pistols and we have nothing. We can’t go against them,” Maung Htay said of his captors.
Through the five years he was held prisoner at sea, Maung Htay had no money. Whatever salary he earned was paid to the brokers who had sold him to work on the fishing boats. When he realized that he would likely never be released, and could die in the sea, Maung Htay resolved to risk everything to escape.
“I decided to swim for my life, no matter what happened, because nothing could be worse than being a slave. I knew only two things. I would die or be liberated. If I didn’t die, I would get freedom. So, it was at night. I and a friend jumped into water and swam for our lives. All I had was the clothes I was wearing and a phone.”
He’d held onto the phone he’d bought when he worked at a timber factory, wrapping it in plastic before jumping into the water. “When we reached the
shore, I used my phone to call for help,” Maung Htay said.
When he reached the shore on an island in Indonesia that borders Thai waters, Maung Htay said he called phone numbers he saw written on signs and billboards offering help. He was rescued by a team from Anti-Slavery International, a human rights nongovernmental organization (NGO) that works to eliminate all forms of slavery around the world. He was taken to Phuket island in Thailand, where Anti-Slavery International released him to the Foundation for Education and Development (FED), a Burmese labor rights organization based in Southern Thailand.
Min Oo, a labor rights activist who works for FED, told the Journal, “Anti-Slavery contacted our office and asked us to take care of him. We went to rescue him with our lawyer and colleagues. He is now with us and safe.”
Hoping for a brighter future, Maung Htay left Burma when he was just a teenager. He is now 42, but his dream is still far from realized. He is still impoverished and has lost all contact with his parents after more than 20 years of working in Thailand.Maung Htay’s long journey has had its ups and downs. He has worked on construction sites and at a timber factory, and was imprisoned as a slave on the high seas.About six years ago, while working at a construction site in a Thai border town, Maung Htay was arrested by Thai police during a raid cracking down on illegal migrant workers. He was taken from the site and detained.A Burmese broker, Naing Oo, paid a fine of 3,000 baht (US$85) to the police in exchange for Maung Htay’s release, promising him a good job. Maung Htay was delighted by the offer, but the job never materialized. He quickly realized that his release from jail actually meant he had been sold to a human trafficking gang and was being sent to work as a slave on a fishing boat in Indonesian waters.Maung Htay is one of thousands of modern-day Burmese who have been held captive and made to work as slaves by traders in the ocean off Thailand and Indonesia.“I worked days and nights, in the rain, in the heat and in the storm,” Maung Htay said in a telephone interview. “We were not fed sufficiently. We had to work even [when] we were injured and sick. They gave no medicine and treatments. Sick people who couldn’t work got shot.”He said he witnessed at least 15 fishermen being tortured and shot by captains and crewmembers because they were sick and asking for medicine. The men’s bodies were thrown into the sea.“I was very sad seeing my colleagues killed. But I could do nothing except feel sad. They have pistols and we have nothing. We can’t go against them,” Maung Htay said of his captors.Through the five years he was held prisoner at sea, Maung Htay had no money. Whatever salary he earned was paid to the brokers who had sold him to work on the fishing boats. When he realized that he would likely never be released, and could die in the sea, Maung Htay resolved to risk everything to escape.“I decided to swim for my life, no matter what happened, because nothing could be worse than being a slave. I knew only two things. I would die or be liberated. If I didn’t die, I would get freedom. So, it was at night. I and a friend jumped into water and swam for our lives. All I had was the clothes I was wearing and a phone.”He’d held onto the phone he’d bought when he worked at a timber factory, wrapping it in plastic before jumping into the water. “When we reached theshore, I used my phone to call for help,” Maung Htay said.When he reached the shore on an island in Indonesia that borders Thai waters, Maung Htay said he called phone numbers he saw written on signs and billboards offering help. He was rescued by a team from Anti-Slavery International, a human rights nongovernmental organization (NGO) that works to eliminate all forms of slavery around the world. He was taken to Phuket island in Thailand, where Anti-Slavery International released him to the Foundation for Education and Development (FED), a Burmese labor rights organization based in Southern Thailand.Min Oo, a labor rights activist who works for FED, told the Journal, “Anti-Slavery contacted our office and asked us to take care of him. We went to rescue him with our lawyer and colleagues. He is now with us and safe.”
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