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Indonesian military guard a crew next to the STS-50, a seized alleged “slave ship,” at the naval port of Sabang, following a dramatic high seas chase.
Global Fishing Watch: A Call for Collaboration to Tackle Forced Labor in Fishing
(UNITED STATES, 8/12/2021)
The following is an excerpt from an article published by Global Fishing Watch:
Satellite technology can offer cost-effective solutions to ocean governance, but stakeholders must work together to be successful
Forced labor is used in fishing fleets around the world—a fact that is becoming known all too well. While not every fishing operation succumbs to such practices, unscrupulous employers will often commodify and exploit workers in order to maximize their profits.
Operators that treat their crews poorly are more likely to engage in illegal fishing and vice-versa, damaging the reputation of the wider fishing industry, including those that conduct their business responsibly. Because commercial fishing takes place across jurisdictional boundaries and is largely conducted out of sight and reach of authorities, it is perhaps the ideal sector for forced labor to be used, and go undetected. The Trafficking in Persons Report issued by the U.S. Department of State outlines cases of trafficking within 189 countries. In 2021, information on more than 50 countries specifically referenced the presence of trafficking and forced labor within the fishing sector.
Addressing forced labor in fishing is complicated. A network of recruiters, agents and fishing operators take advantage of those determined to earn a living, making them increasingly vulnerable with each border crossed, identification document withheld and signature requested on an agreement that’s written in a language other than their native tongue. Those who thought they were setting out to work on a building site, a merchant vessel or a farm in another country find themselves trapped on board a fishing vessel, working in unsafe—even abusive—conditions without adequate rest, pay or means of leaving.
Satellite technology cannot eradicate forced labor in fishing or address the trafficking of workers onto vessels. Nor can it identify forced labor at sea with certainty. But a recent study, conducted by the University of California, Santa Barbara and Global Fishing Watch, found that satellite technology can help to identify vessels that are at risk of using forced labor, and flag that further investigation is needed by competent authorities. Using machine learning techniques and analysis of automatic identification systems data, a model was built that analyzed vessel behavior and compared it with vessels known to have conducted forced labor, as defined by the reported presence of one or more of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Indicators of Forced Labour. The model identifies vessel behavior observed as statistically similar to the known cases, and predicts these are at high risk of engaging in labor abuses.
 Number of model-identified high-risk vessels and (B) percentage of total vessels that are high-risk.jpg)
(A) Number of model-identified high-risk vessels and (B) percentage of total vessels that are high-risk. Statistics are summarized by year within the longliner, squid jigger, and trawler fleets. The “other” flag category groups flags that represent less than 2.5% of vessels across years for a particular gear. The upper and lower bounds of each ribbon respectively represent the minimum and maximum values across all model robustness checks that include vessel characteristic model features, while the middle line of each ribbon represents the average value across all model robustness checks that include vessel characteristic model features.(Source: PNAS)
But this is only a model—a proof of concept—rather than a tool that can be used with a high degree of confidence. To make it operational, we need to ground-truth the model predictions with data from those working in the sector and cross-reference its identifications with more known cases of forced labor, including cases where we are sure no forced labor is present. This will require us to look across vessel types, gear types and flag States. And to do that, we need help.
Over the next 18 months, we will be working with Huw Thomas, a specialist in responsible sourcing and seafood supply chain management, and John Maefiti, an expert on the crewing and operations of commercial fishing vessels, to improve our forced labor risk model. I sat down with them to discuss next steps for Global Fishing Watch.(continues...)
Author: Courtney Farthing/ Global Fishing Watch | Read the full article by clicking the link here
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