Catherwood LibraryILR School

Fourteen Burmese migrants will be charged with defamation today for exposing possible labor abuse in Thailand’s poultry industry. The workers reported mistreatment and abuse while working at a poultry farm in Central Thailand. The allegations include consistently working 22-hour shifts, sleeping on the floor with 30,000 chickens, and only leaving the farm for two hours every week under close supervision, among others. Two workers are also being charged with theft because they brought their timecards to the local police to prove that they were being overworked. If found guilty, they will pay additional fines and could be imprisoned for up to seven years. Human rights workers have denounced the proceedings as an effort to protect business in Thailand at the expense of exploited workers. In recent years, many journalists and human rights advocates have been prosecuted for defamation, which is a criminal matter in Thailand. This will mark the first time where migrant workers will be prosecuted for criminal defamation.