Failed Mimicry: The Thai Government’s Attempts to Combat Labor Trafficking Using Perpetrators’ Means

Abstract

(1) Background: This research paper examines the prevention measures, i.e., the application of technologies such as those abused by “traffickers”, used by government and non-government agencies to combat “internal trafficking” in Samut Sakhon province. The authors review numerous research papers and documents at international and national levels. (2) Methods: the authors use in-depth interviews to relate the anti-internal trafficking measures of the government and non-government agencies. (3) The findings show that these government and non-government agencies have attempted to combat “inter-border” trafficking and internal trafficking. However, limited information and communication gaps in the application of IT-based technology and other media for communication have caused unsatisfactory preventive results and responses against such phenomena. (4) Some findings point to the limited success of an NGO (the Labor Protection Network) whose leader decided to recruit Burmese- and Lao-speaking staff to reach out to potential and actual victims among Burmese and Laotian people. (5) The authors suggest that government agencies learned from this failure and then collaborated more with non-government and migrant worker organizations to provide sufficient information and efficient communication channels to ensure migrant workers’ safety in Thailand’s territory.