The U.S. State Department has once again highlighted documentation of persistent human trafficking and labor abuses in Taiwan’s and Indonesia’s commercial fishing sectors.
“Human trafficking is a direct assault on the values of freedom and dignity that define America,” the State Department said in releasing the report. “The 2026 Trafficking in Persons Report reveals new ways criminal organizations and repressive regimes use this abhorrent practice for financial gain. The report also calls for accountability for governments that fail to punish traffickers and protect their citizens. The Trump Administration will use all available tools to fight traffickers and their enablers and bring them to justice.”
Environmental activist group Greenpeace, however, questioned the U.S. government’s seriousness in address human trafficking, pointing to the fact that neither Indonesia nor Taiwan were dinged in the report’s rankings despite continued infractions. The Trafficking in Persons Report places countries in tiers based on the prevalence of human trafficking activity and how hard a nation’s government is working to address the issue, with Tier 1 being the ranking of least concern, and Tier 4 representing the highest concern. Taiwan was once again listed in Tier 1, while Indonesia was listed in Tier 2.
“How many times will the U.S. government document forced labor in the fishing industry and then award these same rankings?” Greenpeace USA Oceans Director Kate Melges said in a release. “Taiwan and Indonesia occupy powerful positions in the global seafood supply chain and could take steps to address forced labor and human trafficking, yet meaningful progress remains minimal. The U.S. government’s own findings should be grounds for accountability, not an annual exercise in describing the same abuses. Fishers cannot afford another year of business as usual.”
In the report, the State Department justified its ranking of Taiwan in Tier 1 due to the Taiwanese government’s efforts to eliminate human trafficking.
“Taiwan authorities fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. Authorities continued to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts during the reporting period; therefore, Taiwan remained on Tier 1,” the State Department explained in its report.
Despite that, the U.S. government listed a litany of issues it took with how Taiwan is working to eliminate trafficking, noting that there have been zero indictments of distant water fishing cases since 2022.
“Although Taiwan met the minimum standards, authorities convicted markedly fewer labor traffickers; failed to include civil society in onboard fisher interviews as in prior years; and inadequately implemented victim identification procedures, complicating victims’ access to justice and protective care. Insufficient inspection protocols; unclear roles, responsibilities, and reporting chains; and a lack of interagency coordination continued to chronically impede efforts to identify, investigate, and prosecute forced labor of migrant workers, including those on fishing vessels in Taiwan’s highly vulnerable DWF, resulting in enduring gaps in victim identification and enforcement, despite reported prevalence,” the State Department said.
Similarly, the Indonesian government was credited for its efforts to tackle human trafficking, while the substance of the report included a laundry list of concerns with how the nation is going about tackling human trafficking.
“The Government of Indonesia does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so. The government demonstrated overall increasing efforts compared with the previous reporting period; therefore, Indonesia remained on Tier 2,” the State Department said, while admitting that Indonesia reported fewer investigations and only convicted four traffickers in the year.
“The fishing industry remains among the most highly exploitative industries in Indonesia. Traffickers exploit Indonesian victims within Indonesia’s domestic fishing fleet and overseas in the distant water fishing fleets of China, the Republic of Korea, and Taiwan,” the State Department found. “Traffickers fraudulently recruit fishers and force them to fish for long hours on vessels that sometimes do not return to shore for months or years. Some vessels keep workers after completion of their contracts, and senior crewmembers routinely deny fishers access to medical care.”
In a novel case, a group of four Indonesian fishers have attempted to hold tuna giant Bumble Bee accountable for the labor violations taking place on vessels it sources from. The fishers claim that Bumble Bee should have been aware of the violations taking place in the tuna fleet and should therefore be liable under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA). Last year, a U.S. federal judge allowed the case to move forward.
Greenpeace is providing legal support for that case.
“I’m actually in tears. I am happy and overwhelmed,” Syafi’i, a plaintiff in the case, said when the case was allowed to move forward. “This gives me hope for justice for me and my fellow plaintiffs as we struggle for justice and change for the better. Our fight and sacrifice are not in vain in order to get justice for all of the fishers. I remain steadfast, strong, and enthusiastic.”
