︱Road to Migrant Fishers’ Rights
• Combating forced labor on the high seas and
timely handling complaints
The vulnerability of foreign fishermen is due to the nature of their
industry. Issues such as poor working conditions, wages not being paid in
full or directly, poor living conditions, and lack of a transparent channel for
complaints have all been mentioned above. These structural problems have
resulted in the systematic exploitation of labor.
However, such practices of forced labor have rarely been classified as
human trafficking. In 2019, judicial police agencies prosecuted 32 cases
of human trafficking and exploitation. Charges were filed and summary
judgments were requested for 14 cases (43%). Only 7 cases (21%) were
found guilty by the district courts21. Many issues with the current system
were found including an inadequate procedure for identification of the
victims; blurred division of responsibilities between the MOL and the FA
impacted on the time and efficiency of distant water fishing vessels making
it difficult to investigate forced labor of distant water fishermen; the lack of
21. In 2019, judicial police agencies prosecuted 32 cases of human trafficking and exploitation.
Charges were filed and summary judgments were requested for 14 cases (43%). Only 7
cases (21%) were found guilty by the district courts; this showed that investigation and
sentencing of forced labor cases by prosecutors and the courts led to summary sentences
(suspended sentence, set term of imprisonment commutable to fines or community service,
or fines). Only 20% of the cases were found guilty so there is room for improvement in how
such cases are handled. (Please refer to the Control Yuan Investigation Report approved on
May 5, 2021 (110財調0007), p.120.)
According to the 2020 Progress Report on Combating Human Trafficking of the R.O.C.
(Taiwan) issued by the National Immigration Agency of Ministry of the Interior: 159 cases of
human trafficking were detected in 2020. Of these, 29 were for forced labor and 130 were
for sexual exploitation; charges were filed by local prosecutors’ offices in 78 cases related
to human trafficking.
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