One ship, three deaths: the shocking truth behind working conditions on a Chinese trawler | Workers’ rights

Abdul was the first to fall ill, in February 2025, four months after his very first stay on a tuna longline fishing vessel in the Indian Ocean. Told he was “weak” and “overreacting” by other crew members, he forced himself to continue working, even though he could barely stand, his legs swollen and bruised.

In the months that followed, other crew members of the Tia Xiang 5, a Chinese vessel owned by Shandong Zhonglu Oceanic Fisheries, a large state-owned fishing company, reportedly began suffering similar symptoms: swollen, painful limbs and debilitating weakness, with some becoming severely short of breath. They were offered no proper medical care, says Abdul, 36, or any rest after the grueling 16-hour days, for which they earned 4.6 million Indonesian rupiah (about £198) a month.

The fishermen were fed “bait” fish that was not fresh and “bad tasting” and with few vegetables, Abdul says. They were also wary of the water they were made to drink; distilled from sea water, it was “too salty” when the machine broke down and “yellow” or “dirty” in color.

Then, one by one, some of the sick crew members began to deteriorate, Abdul says.

The first to die was Isko*, a Filipino fisherman. He was “courageous” to defy the captain and declare himself unfit for duty, Abdul says. But he was “punished”: ostracized and forced to sleep on the deck, with just a tarpaulin to protect himself from the rain and the scorching sun.

Joko*, 34, a friend of Abdul’s from the same town in West Java, says there was no bedding, “just blankets”. “The captain didn’t allow him to go to sleep for four days,” he says.

Yet despite the sick fisherman’s pleas, according to other crew members interviewed by the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) and seen by the Guardian, the captain did not return to port or allow Isko to return home.

Isko died four days later, Joko claims.

In total, according to these multiple testimonies, three fishermen, including another Filipino and an Indonesian, died. on board the Tia Xiang 5 during this trip, all because of undiagnosed illnesses. The symptoms experienced by the fishermen are typical of beriberi, a disease caused by vitamin deficiency and often seen in migrant fishermen due to insufficiently nutritious diets, according to the EJF.

Abdul, a former laundry worker from Pelabuhan Ratu, West Java’s Sukabumi region, who had never worked at sea before, spoke of his sadness over their deaths.

“During those eight months, even though we came from different countries, we were together,” says this father. “When my friends left me, I felt sad. I cried. They all had plans, things they were going to do and places they were going to go. They were just gone.”

He feared that “it would be my turn next. I might not live another day.”

A harrowing video, obtained by the EJF and seen by the Guardian, shows a dead man, identified as Isko by crew members, lying in a corridor. The person filming tries to wake him, then finally, in what is considered an Islamic funeral rite, crosses the man’s hands over the other. The footage takes place below deck, where the crew is busy fishing.

By cross-referencing other images of the ship and crew taken by the fishermen, including one showing a lifebuoy on which the words “Tia Xiang 5” are written, the EJF claims to have verified that the video was taken on board the Tai Xiang 5.

“After work, we went upstairs,” says Joko, who says he felt numb. “Everyone who had finished their work came to help us.”

They built a makeshift coffin from wooden pallets, wrapped Isko in a blanket, and placed the coffin in the ship’s freezer.

After Isko’s death, fear spread among the sick members of the crew. Only after the condition of a third fisherman deteriorated did the ship return to Singapore, but the fisherman died en route, according to the crew interviewed by the EJF.

By the time Abdul arrived with a leg swollen “like an elephant’s leg”, he was so weak he had to use a wheelchair at the Singapore airport. Once he arrived in Jakarta, he was taken to hospital and treated for a lymphatic disease, he said. He says it took him two to three months and additional expensive treatment to fully recover from his ordeal. His salary after deductions, including Rs 6.5 million for hospital treatment, amounted to just Rs 11.9 million for eight months at sea.

Abdul, who agreed that his first name could be used, hopes that speaking out will lead to improved working conditions for migrant workers.

Steve Trent, CEO and founder of EJF, described the situation on board the Tia Xiang 5 as an “inexcusable case of extreme negligence” by workers and a “violent attack on people’s rights”.

“This is a brutal affair, but the sad reality is that it is very typical of what is happening in the Chinese distant waters fleet,” he said.

Hundreds of crew testimonies, cross-referenced with contracts, passport details and satellite tracking by the EJF revealed this, Trent says.

“There are terrible conditions where, rather than being transferred ashore, they are forced to continue working,” says Trent. “And you have this tragic situation where three of them are dead. It’s inexcusable.”

The fish caught by this crew could enter the European Union market, he says. “In this case, we know that they [Shendong Zhonglu] have access to Japan, EU, South Korea and the UK. They are allowed to access these markets. The product could therefore end up on our plates.

The EFJ calls on the UK and other countries to adopt a Global Charter for Transparency. A report published last year revealed that critical checks on seafood entering Britain have fallen to alarming levels since the UK left the EU.

Each year, the UK receives around 1,000 “catch certificates” from China, which equates to an average of around 58,000 tonnes of seafood. Yet despite the fleet’s serious history of illegal fishing and labor abuses, the UK has only refused four shipments of seafood from China since 2012, indicating that these imports are not properly controlled, according to the Coalition for Conservation. fisheries transparency.

Fishermen on board tuna longliners are particularly at risk of excessive working hours due to the considerable time required to set and retrieve fishing lines.

“The reality is that this is a major global challenge,” says Ben Harkins, technical specialist at the International Labor Organization (ILO). “The essential starting point is to put in place a legal framework regarding working conditions. » With the exception of Thailand, the ILO Fisheries Convention, its international labor standard for fishing boats, is not ratified across Southeast Asia, the ILO found.

“There are many constraints, both legal and practical, that prevent migrant fishers from organizing, but experience shows that this can be a driver for better wages and working conditions,” says Harkins.

Shandong Zhonglu Oceanic Fisheries, companies recruiting workers on their behalf and the Chinese Embassy in the UK have been contacted for comment.

*Some names have been changed to protect identity