LEAD STORY

Thailand: Poultry processing firm loses defamation suit against individuals who commented on migrant worker abuse case
BBC

Three Thai human rights campaigners have been found not guilty of criminal defamation over social media posts. The comments were about the alleged abuse of migrant workers at poultry businessman Chanchai Pheamphon’s Thammakaset chicken processing factories. The defendants included Angkhana Neelapaijit, a former member of Thailand's National Human Rights Commission, who faced a jail term for up to 8 years. She was cleared along with Puttanee Kangkun and Thanaporn Saleelphol.

The case began in 2016 when 14 migrant workers in the Thammakaset chicken processing plant complained of excessively long working hours and having their passports withheld. Thai authorities ordered the company to pay the workers THB1.7m (USD50,000) in compensation. Mr Chanchai then filed criminal charges - 37 of them, against 22 individuals, who had commented about the case. Mr Chanchai says he is only exercising his right to defend his company’s reputation with his litigation. Find out more about these cases in our database.

FROM US

Qatar 2022: Survey reveals slow progress from hotel brands on effective due diligence & worker engagement, but some improved transparency
BHRRC

Following the publication of After the Final Whistle, which documented the experiences of migrant workers who toiled to prepare and host the tournament in November and December 2022, we invited 29 local and multinational hotel brands with a presence in Qatar to disclose information regarding operations during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
 
We followed up on previous outreach, undertaken 6 months before the tournament. The latest findings revealed some increased engagement by brands, for example with the disclosure of business partner names; but insufficient efforts relating to human rights due diligence, with a continued focus on audits and external certifications without worker engagement. While more cases of recruitment-fee charging were detected, brands remain reluctant to disclose the amounts reimbursed to workers. 
 
Only 11 companies - Accor, BWH Hotel Group, Deutsche Hospitality, Four Seasons Hotels, Hilton, Hyatt (answering on behalf of Dream Hotels which it now owns), IHG Hotels & Resorts, Kempinski Hotels, Millennium Hotels & Resorts, Minor International and Radisson Hotel Group - provided a response. 18 companies, including Frasers Hospitality, Louvre Hotels, Mandarin Oriental, Marriott, The Ascott, TIME Hotels, Whitbread and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts did not respond.