Advocacy is resistance: Navigating anti-LGBTQI+ violence in post-war Guatemala May 23, 2024 | Read more
Canadian coalition calls for urgent action to uphold civil liberties and Charter rights at protests and encampments across the country May 15, 2024 | Read more
Inter Pares joins call for Burma to end use of violence and respect democracy Feb 4, 2021 | Read more
Planning is resistance: Indigenous people in Burma envision a self-determined future May 23, 2024 | Read more
Inter Pares welcomes Canada’s feminist realignment of international assistance Jun 9, 2017 | Read more
Stopping the unstoppable: Citizen resistance to exterminator technology in Burkina Faso Sep 4, 2019 | Read more
The Immigrant Workers Centre to receive 2018 Peter Gillespie Social Justice Award Apr 18, 2018 | Read more
“Until We Find Them”: Searching for missing loved ones on the road to the North Mar 11, 2019 | Read more
CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS | Inter Pares and SUWRA launch Canadian civil society working group on Sudan Jun 25, 2024 | Read more
Karate and bodily autonomy: Helping girls in Bangladesh thrive through sport Dec 15, 2022 | Read more
Planning is resistance: Indigenous people in Burma envision a self-determined future May 23, 2024 | Read more
Advocacy is resistance: Navigating anti-LGBTQI+ violence in post-war Guatemala May 23, 2024 | Read more
Advocacy is resistance: Navigating anti-LGBTQI+ violence in post-war Guatemala May 23, 2024 | Read more
Sold into Slavery: Burma’s refugees exploited by Malaysian traffickers and authorities news : Updates August 19, 2009 Share Print Outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Makeshift camp in the jungle. Victor Biak Lian was visibly angry as he told us about several young men from Burma who were sold into slavery. Victor, a founder of the Chin Human Rights Organization, is a colleague of Inter Pares. The story began when ten young men, like thousands of others, fled persecution in Chin State, a highly militarized region of Burma. They paid a broker to transport them to Malaysia where they hoped to find work. Arriving at the border of Malaysia and Thailand, the young men were turned over to another broker. Two of the men were separated from the group and put onto a fishing boat which they assumed would take them to Malaysia. Instead, they were greeted by an armed captain who told them they now belonged to him. For the next twenty-two days, the fishing boat plied the waters off the coastline of Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. There were seven other crew members, all virtual slaves. They were fed little and worked hard. One day a storm warning came in over the radio and the boat headed for shore. In the dark of night, all of the men slipped over the side. For the next four years they worked on a rubber plantation along the Thailand-Malaysia border and witnessed traffickers prey on other refugees. Some refugees were sold into slavery. Others were taken into Malaysia if they could pay a hefty fee. Women refugees often simply disappeared. "Theirs is not a unique story," said Victor. "Thousands of Burmese refugees are coming to Malaysia seeking security. But what they find is exploitation, extortion, trafficking, and sometimes death." Victor’s concerns were corroborated in April when the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations released a report on Burmese refugees in Malaysia and southern Thailand. Male refugees, the report confirmed, are often sold into slavery on the fishing fleets. Women are frequently sold to brothels. The report condemned the Malaysian government’s use of civilian vigilante groups to hunt down refugees in order to deport them. The report noted that some corrupt Malaysian authorities are complicit in handing over refugees to traffickers. International attention and condemnation are required to put an end to these abuses. In the meantime, Inter Pares and the Chin Human Rights Organization are supporting refugees in Malaysia to organize to reduce their vulnerability. Refugee communities are now negotiating directly with authorities to report mistreatment and corruption by officials. They are developing basic services and working with UN agencies to provide protection to women and children. Some day these refugees will go home when human rights and freedom return to Burma. For now, they are developing their own collective security in a hostile and often dangerous environment. Some refugees were sold into slavery. Others were taken into Malaysia if they could pay a hefty fee. Women refugees often simply disappeared. Learn more Bulletin: Solidarity Is Our Security. Add new comment You must have JavaScript enabled to use this form. Your name Comment * Save Leave this field blank