Cambodian fishing crew don’t want to go home: Thai fisheries association
Most Cambodian fishing crew in Thailand don’t want to return home, citing better pay and job security despite rising border tensions.
The president of the National Fisheries Association of Thailand (NFAT) said on Monday that a recent survey found most Cambodians working as fishing crew in Thailand do not want to return home.
Mongkol Sukcharoenkana, president of the NFAT, said he had instructed provincial fisheries associations in the four provinces with the highest number of Cambodian fishing crew to conduct checks with the workers. The findings revealed that most did not wish to go back to Cambodia.
The surveys were conducted by fisheries associations in Trat, Rayong, Ranong, and Samut Prakan — each employing over 10,000 Cambodian crew members.
Mongkol said the workers told surveyors they did not want to return to work in Cambodia, as proposed by the Cambodian government.
They said they earned 350–400 baht per day in Thailand, compared to just 100–200 baht in Cambodia. Many also feared being unemployed if they returned home.
“In short, the fisheries industry would not be affected by the border disputes,” Mongkol said.
Previously, the Cambodian government — particularly former Prime Minister Hun Sen — had called on Cambodian workers in Thailand to return home. The appeal was made amid rising border tensions between the two neighbouring countries.
The move initially sparked concerns among Thai business groups that their operations could be disrupted if Cambodian workers were to leave en masse.
