CNA Correspondent
As a top seafood exporter, Taiwan has the world's second largest distant water fishing fleet after China. But behind its fresh catch is the blood, sweat and tears of many migrant fishermen. Taiwan has more than 1,000 deep-water fishing vessels, hiring some 20,000 foreign fishermen from Southeast Asia. They are the main source of labour that supports an industry that's worth billions of dollars a year. But in 2020, for the first time, Taiwan's seafood was classified as products of forced labour by the US, following a string of allegations that underpaid migrant fishermen were abused and overworked to death. In this episode of CNA Correspondent, we tell the stories of these fishermen and how Taiwan's seafood becomes, literally, tainted with their blood.
CNA Correspondent - S1: Taiwan's Fishing Slavery
As a top seafood exporter, Taiwan has the world's second largest distant water fishing fleet after China. But behind its fresh catch is the blood, sweat and tears of many migrant fishermen. Taiwan has more than 1,000 deep-water fishing vessels, hiring some 20,000 foreign fishermen from Southeast Asia. They are the main source of labour that supports an industry that's worth billions of dollars a year. But in 2020, for the first time, Taiwan's seafood was classified as products of forced labour by the US, following a string of allegations that underpaid migrant fishermen were abused and overworked to death. In this episode of CNA Correspondent, we tell the stories of these fishermen and how Taiwan's seafood becomes, literally, tainted with their blood.