THE HAGUE, Netherlands — A North Korean worker who claims he is a victim of modern slavery in a Polish shipyard has filed a criminal complaint against a Dutch shipbuilder that bought products from the Polish firm.
The Global Legal Action Network group said in a statement Thursday that the man, whose name was not released, “endured 12 hour workdays in unsafe conditions, and had much of his wages seized by the North Korean state.”
The network did not release the plaintiff’s name “to protect his safety.”
Dutch lawyer Barbara van Straaten, who filed the complaint Monday, also is not releasing the name of the Dutch company involved so as not to jeopardize any investigations.
Under Dutch law, companies can face prosecution if they profit from labor exploitation, even if it happens in another country. /kga