Thailand aims for improved status on US human trafficking watchlist
Deputy Prime Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan chaired an Anti-Trafficking in Persons Committee meeting on Wednesday to track government progress in the past year with the aim of improving Thailand’s status on the US Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report.
Prawit hopes to see Thailand removed from the current Tier 2 Watchlist and included in the higher Tier 2 level.
“General Prawit has urged relevant agencies to strictly follow the guidelines in the 2022 TIP Interim Assessment Report, which the United States has given to 45 countries on the Tier 2 Watchlist including Thailand, so that they can move up the list in this year’s evaluation,” said Pol General Thammasak Witchayara, a committee executive director, on Wednesday.
The Tier 2 Watchlist refers to countries whose governments do not fully comply with the minimum standards of the US Trafficking Victims Protection Act but are making significant efforts to bring themselves into compliance with those standards.
To get to the Tier 2 level, the country must not have a significant number of trafficking victims.
“The deputy PM had earlier tasked the Immigration Bureau, the Royal Thai Police Headquarters and the Labour Ministry to be ‘central agencies’ in establishing human trafficking victim screening centres,” said Thammasak.
“Labour Minister Suchart Chomklin said his ministry would provide funding and support officials for the campaign, while Digital Economy and Society Minister Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn said his ministry would develop victim interviewing and database systems that are linked to the international database on human trafficking syndicates to make sure victims receive legal services based on international human rights standards,” Thammasak said.
“The campaign is now about 80 per cent complete. We are in the process of renovating the buildings to be used for this purpose and installing necessary equipment in interview rooms where victims could talk with officials,” he added.
