Ma Li is, by most accounts, a “good broker" who helps fellow migrants find a safe path into the Thai shrimp processing industry. Of course, she makes some money too.
Kyaw Thaung covers migrant worker issues in the Thai seafood industry. He's also an activist and, occasionally, he’s in the odd position of reporting on news events that he has helped orchestrate.
Mi Oo thought he was headed for a better-paying job in the Thai seafood industry. Instead, he bought his way into a waking nightmare.
America's appetite for cheap shrimp from Southeast Asia is growing, but at what cost? In Thailand, illegal and abusive labor practices go unchecked to feed a booming demand. Images by Jason Motlagh.
In a world hungry for cheap shrimp, Burmese migrants are the backbone of a Thai shrimp industry that is the world’s third largest. But low prices often come at their expense.
The world--and especially the U.S--wants cheap shrimp. For the $1 billion plus shrimping industry in Thailand, satisfying this appetite comes at the expense of workers.
Thanks to a bottomless appetite for inexpensive shrimp in the West, Burmese migrants are the backbone of a Thai shrimp industry that is the world’s third largest. But there's a darker side.
Gateways
Grantee
Jason Motlagh is a writer, photographer and filmmaker. Until recently TIME Magazine’s Kabul correspondent, he has reported from around Afghanistan and more than 35 countries for leading U.S...
Grantee
Stephen Sapienza is an award-winning news and documentary producer who has covered a wide range of human security stories, including the HIV crisis in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, child...