Taipei- The “You Fu Ten” migrant fishers gathered with allies today to speak out against the shocking, real-life Port of Lies they have experienced after working more than a year without pay aboard the Taiwanese vessel, You Fu. In a horrifying example of forced labor, wage theft, and debt bondage, the fishers have just returned to Taiwan after 15 months at sea.
“I departed to Taiwan with the expectation to provide for my family, instead we are falling into debt. We are deceived. Our contract says that we will be paid after we enter the port but we were not paid until now. People thought I had been paid. There are people and relatives coming to our home asking for their money to be returned. I felt ashamed,” said Tappe, a You Fu fisher.
The fishers were kept at sea for 15 months in abusive conditions, had their identification documents confiscated, were lied to about their itinerary, and, even after their return, have not been paid an estimated minimum of $80,850 USD basic wages for their work. Workers were instead told that they would have to return to sea again and perform additional work to be paid for work already completed.
“We have still not been paid in full, and the agent keeps changing the rules on when we will receive our money. They are trying to pay us less than we are owed, in installments. We said no! We did our full work on the vessel, and we want our full salary,” said Dias.
“I begged the agent to pay a month of my salaries when the vessel was docked in Samoa. But, she said no. I was in dire need of money, my mom was sick and later passed away. I was unable to do anything and I have literally lost trust towards these people,” said Untung.
Gathered outside of the Legislative Yuan Research Building, the fishers and their allies–including Indonesian Seafarers Gathering Forum, or Forum Silaturahmi Pelaut Indonesia (FOSPI), Global Labor Justice (GLJ), Taiwan Association for Human Rights (TAHR), Stella Maris Kaohsiung, Humanity Research Consultancy (HRC)–demanded repayment of stolen wages and reforms to the industry.
“Taiwan prides itself on being a regional leader in democratic governance and respect for human rights. However, when migrant fishers have no way to protect their rights while they are at sea, it is a failure of democracy. Government officials have claimed that their national action plan and labor inspections would be able to prevent violations of Taiwan laws, but this has not been the case. The You Fu Ten incident represents a failure on all fronts. These fishers were failed by the Fisheries Agency, the vessel owners, the manning agency, and the brands that ultimately control the seafood industry,” said Shih Yi-hsiang (施逸翔) - Senior Researcher, Taiwan Association for Human Rights.
On Monday, migrant fishers and their supporters delivered a letter to the Taiwanese Fisheries Agency, demanding compensation, including unpaid wages and penalties.
