Volunteers take on human trafficking gangs in Thai south
Groups of southern Thais, who complain of government inaction, are banding together to combat the illegal trade in human cargo
PUBLISHED : Friday, 30 January, 2015, 11:09pm
UPDATED : Friday, 30 January, 2015, 11:15pm
Reuters in Ban Bang Yai
Armed volunteers prepare for patrol on their boat in Phang Nga province.Photo: Reuters
Bullet-proof vest, shotgun, sunglasses: Kompat Sompaorat could be mistaken for a member of a SWAT team.
He actually belongs to a motley group of Thai civilians who, frustrated by their government's lacklustre response to human trafficking, have taken up arms to patrol one of Asia's busiest smuggling routes.
For three months now, scores of volunteers have patrolled the estuaries and jungles of Phang Nga province, a popular tourist destination in southern Thailand a short drive from the famous resort island of Phuket.
They are motivated by humanitarian concerns, they claim, but also worry the presence of armed smugglers and impoverished refugees in the vicinity could lead to an increase in crime and scare away tourists.
"There are big, big guys behind this trade - so big we can't do anything about it. We can't touch them," said Kompat, as the volunteers arrive at an abandoned smuggling camp near the village of Ban Bang Yai strewn with children's shoes, women's camisoles and trash.
"We can only try to save their victims," he said.
Despite pledges by Thailand's military junta to combat human trafficking, the volunteers say the influx of illegal migrants is growing, many of them Rohingya Muslims from western Myanmar, and little is being done to stop the gangs.
Every year, thousands of Rohingya and Bangladeshi boat people arrive in Thailand, brought by the smugglers. They are then taken by road to desolate camps, where traffickers demand a ransom to smuggle them south across the border to Malaysia.
Last year Thailand was downgraded to the lowest tier on the US State Department's influential Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report, which annually ranks countries by their counter-trafficking efforts.
The Thai government, installed after a military coup last May, has vowed to improve its record, and is due to submit a report to the State Department in Washington detailing the progress it has made.
Sek Wannamethee, a spokesman for Thailand's foreign affairs ministry, said locals in southern Thailand were being encouraged to be the "eyes and ears" of the local government.
"Fostering partnership, especially with the locals, has proved to help detecting illegal activities and can greatly aid the investigation," said Sek. "But of course, law enforcement and administration still remains the responsibility of … officials and local authorities."
The Bangkok-based Fortify Rights group said it was "very concerning" that armed volunteers were taking on traffickers.
The volunteers are partly funded by Takua Pa district, but some costs, particularly fuel, come from their own pockets.
They said they had yet to catch any smugglers or traffickers. But they have discovered more than 220 Rohingya Muslims and Bangladeshis over the past three months and handed them over to immigration police.
Smugglers, the volunteers said, once hid groups of 300 to 500 Rohingya on the islands that dot the district, but have grown more cautious.
Despite the enormity of the task, the volunteers said they were being spurred on by the disconnect between government policy and practice.
"The government can announce as many anti-trafficking policies it wants," said Cherdchai Papattamayutanon, a village chief in Takua Pa. "The truth is, we're at the frontline here and we're alone."
