Mr Guy said: "At that stage they effectively came into a sea of bodies. Abstract. We have noticed that there is an issue with your subscription billing details. The siblings have been separated. The UK Fujian Association gave 10,000 yuan (about 660) to many of the victims, but this was barely enough to pay for the funerals. Visitors may notice something strange walking through this quaint German town. The children looked lost, disbelieving. "I was on my own And then a helicopter came," he said. "I can barely pay the fees for his high-school education. Gang labour is common in the building trade, and poor health and safety under gangmasters has led to many injuries and, in some cases, deaths. He would rather start work early so that he can start making payments on the debt that he will inherit as soon as he comes of age - a responsibility that few children of his age have to bear. Mr Gradwell claimed other similar disasters could still occur because people are willing to exploit the poorest in society for their own ends. The emergency services were alerted by a mobile phone call made by one of the workers, who spoke little English and was only able to say "sinking water" before the call was cut off. There are some outlets just 10 minutes from here and I hear they pay OK, about three or four yuan [20-25p] an hour. "People tend to think that slavery is something to do with faraway countries with poor human rights records," he said. Her orphaned nephew Xu Bin has inherited debts of more than 200,000 yuan (13,250). Li Hua was trafficked by 'snakeheads' from China via Moscow to the UK. "Look at this house. Published 7th Feb 2004, 00:00 BST. [12] Lin Mu Yong was sentenced to four years and nine months. He said: "The water covered the wheel and the vehicle couldn't move. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. On the lonely cockle banks of Morecambe Bay In Fujian and Zeeland they mourn their next of kin Gang masters with snake tattoos call money loans back in Broked hearted parents watch their children stow away To the lonely cockle banks of Morecambe Bay The tide is the very Devil and The Devil has its day On the lonely cockle banks of Morecambe Bay Their father had died in an accident several years earlier, leaving the family deep in debt. All rights reserved. At the moment, it is impossible. "They put me in prison for a year. The GLA has had some success in dismantling crime rings in Cambridgeshire, Derby and Norfolk, yet the scale of the problem seems beyond its reach. The sculpture was actually imagined before the tragedy occurred in 2004. I have a serious disease. Chinese cockle pickers who died in Morecambe Bay, northwest England in 2004. A family portrait in 2004 shows the couple smiling with their two children. "Please help us. But the family is subsisting rather than living. His father went overseas to earn enough for his tuition. The events of that night left indelible memories for everyone involved - from the sole Chinese survivor and witness - to the lifeboat crew who found themselves confronted by a "sea of bodies". But she feels a constant pressure. 2023 Atlas Obscura. They have done nothing wrong. ", Among all the people I meet in Fujian, Lin has come the furthest to talk but appears to have the lowest expectations. Registered in England No. ", As we leave, our driver, Lin Wanxiong, explains how Fujianese people have been travelling overseas to make their fortunes for many generations. David Anthony Eden Sr. and David Anthony Eden Jr., a father and son from England, had allegedly arranged to pay a group of Chinese workers 5 per 25kg (9p per lb) of cockles. Gangmaster Lin Liang Ren would drive the workers to Morecambe from Liverpool and visit casinos while the men and women toiled through the night. Charitable appeals have made little progress. Professor Gary Craig, who led the study, said there was a "real problem" getting people to acknowledge that "slavery exists in the UK" and warned there were "accidents waiting to happen". comments sorted by Best Top New Controversial Q&A Add a Comment . "The Chinese workers were caught up in it," said local fisherman Gary Cheetham. So why are the authorities unable to prevent this kind of situation arising? United Kingdom. ", There has been a little charity for her and several other families, from the Fuqing Overseas Workers organisation. When 23 Chinese cockle pickers died at Morecambe Bay in 2004, the gangmaster was caught and convicted, bodies were repatriated, the disaster tidied away. Please, The subscription details associated with this account need to be updated. The Chinese workers were unfamiliar with local geography, language, and custom. "Sometimes I think if he hadn't died I would live a better life.". The other quietly grasps my hand and implores me to help. Is climate change killing Australian wine? Then she went upstairs and swallowed a bottle of rat poison. Morecambe Bay is a large estuary in northwest England, just to the south of the Lake District National Park.It is the largest expanse of intertidal mudflats and sand in the United Kingdom, covering a total area of 120 sq mi (310 km 2).In 1974, the second largest gas field in the UK was discovered 25 mi (40 km) west of Blackpool, with original reserves of over 7 trillion cubic feet (tcf) (200 . Follow us on Twitter to get the latest on the world's hidden wonders. "There is no precedent All we can do is wait.". Artist Isaac Julien: 'I didn't know if I'd live on until the 90s. A lot The only contribution we made to the families is that because we did recover the people we gave them some closure - rather than people being lost at sea.". The organisation was set up to protect vulnerable workers in the shell fish, agriculture, food and food packaging labour markets but MPs and academics are campaigning for it to be given more powers. "I dare not tell my sons about our debts. Li said: "I wanted to get justice for those who died. He said: "I think a lot about those who didn't survive, particularly at Chinese New Year, because it happened around that time. The interview over, I ask if I can take some pictures of the mother, grandmother and son. With China's economy racing along at double-digit pace and huge inflows of cash from overseas, this region has never had it so good. Oneupmanship does not come much more literal. Yet, 10 years on, campaigners say workers are still being dangerously exploited in the UK. Hundreds of workers lined the Bay's sands in search for cockles, stretching out for miles in dangerous proximity to the treacherous rising tides. Inset: bodies being removed after the disaster. The Child-Eating Bunyip Haunts Australias Wetlands. ", She shows me a letter she received from her husband before he died. "So it had a lasting effect on them," he added. A decade ago 23 Chinese cockle pickers drowned when they were trapped by sweeping tides while working in Morecambe Bay, Lancashire. The young woman shrugs as she ushers her son into the bedroom next door. "We all came for the same reason. Sinking water, sinking water.". ", Dependants Wife Chen Jinyun and sons Lin Luan, 19, and Lin Huan, 18 Debt More than 100,000 yuan (6,625) Monthly income 600 yuan (40), Chen Jinyun is on the run. Research led by Durham University last year found evidence that the numbers of people trafficked for labour exploitation would soon exceed those brought to the country for sexual exploitation. Ten Thousand Waves, featuring Maggie Cheung as Mazu, is a collaboration with the Chinese poet Wang Ping, whom Julien met in 2006 and brought to Morecambe Bay; she produced a poem that "became . Aerial shots of large-scale calligraphy counterpoint to the thermal imaging footage from the rescue services to Morecambe Bay. All she does all day is collect rubbish for recycling so we can get a little extra money," explains Chen. Explore in 3D: The dazzling crown that makes a king. Chen says she has sold her wedding jewellery and persuaded the creditors to stop charging 10% interest. Yet many of the underlying causes, and especially the role of gangmasters, remain unresolved. Photograph: Jonathan Watts, Audio slideshow: Jonathan Watts visits the families of the cockle pickers who died at Morcambe Bay three years ago. Morecambe Bay cockling disaster, 2004 - BBC Archive 2023 BBC. She really got on well with her son-in-law and now he is gone, she knows what problems we face.". If I am dead, I will never be able to repay them.". The death of her husband Dong Xinwu has left them with a debt of 240,000 yuan and no breadwinner to pay it back. In the early negotiations with Mr Chang, the local gang boss, Li was told the journey would take only a few weeks and that, at the end of it, he would be guaranteed work in a factory or restaurant. He does everything he is told without complaint or enthusiasm. [2] Twenty-one bodies, of men and women between the ages of 18 and 45, were recovered from the bay after the incident. "Dad's only wish is that you study harder and harder and never act too proud. 'I heard them screaming as they drowned around me - The Sun In almost every home, it would start up almost as soon as I - or any other visitor - entered the house, and continue until we left. The area of Morecambe Bay where 21 cockle pickers died is seen in this illustration released by Lancashire Police Credit: Reuters. As they stare into the camera, I notice the painfully inappropriate English slogan emblazoned on her T-shirt. Always listen to your mother.". 2004 mass drowning in Morecambe Bay, England, "Skull found in Morecambe Bay 'belongs to cockle-picker', "Cockle pickers were swimming the wrong direction", "Man Convicted in Shellfish Pickers' Deaths", "Cockler deaths jury shown film of survivor's rescue", "Victims of the sands and the snakeheads", Cocklers tragedy highlights need for high safety standards, "Exhibition: 'Memento', Ed Pien, 24 April - 4 July 2009", BBC report, Cockler gangmaster gets 14 years, The Cod Fisheries: The History of an International Economy, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Morecambe_Bay_cockling_disaster&oldid=1151986537, February 2004 events in the United Kingdom, Illegal immigration to the United Kingdom, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 27 April 2023, at 13:17. Like most victims, Zhou's husband Cao Chaokun was not well educated. It is very hard to make a living here. But the Japanese police were very good. Mr Hua said: "I could not believe I was being rescued and I was alive again.". He said he "kept waving" at the helicopter. "She has lost her mind. "I work on a construction site from time to time, mixing concrete," she says, her dialect so heavy that even the interpreter has difficulty understanding; her words need to be translated into standard Mandarin before they can be retranslated into English for me. The creditors haven't started to harass him yet because they know he is just a kid, but they will when he grows up. ", We sneak back into her home so that she can show me the life she left behind. But returning to Fujian more than three years later, I find that familiar lament greeting me as I enter the home of Chen Yanchun, who has met me at the airport and sobbed for most of the 50-minute drive to see her family. Others are furious and threaten to beat me. Lawyers in London are pressing a claim for money from Britain's criminal compensation fund, but if a payment comes at all it could take years. I guess he is also the poorest and least educated. Lin Liang Ren was jailed for 14 years in 2006 after being found guilty of manslaughter and helping the cockle pickers break immigration laws. The authorities were so pleased with the outcome of Operation Lund (as the case was called) that investigators won last year's top criminal justice award. To earn money, I have to endure the depths of bitterness. The Morecambe Bay cockle pickers tragedy: a survivor's story. In fact, the snakeheads were paid off long before the accidents. They did not do anything illegal once they got to the UK. ", Dependants Wife Zhou Xiaomei and son Cao Xianyong 13, daughter Cao Meiyun 16 Debt 200,000 yuan (13,250) Monthly income 250 yuan (17). Her husband's death meant instant ruin. The dangers of Morecambe Bay, where 23 Chinese cocklers lost their lives in 2004, include fast-rising tides and quicksands. [8] A survivor testified that the leader of the group had made a mistake about the time of the tides. The court heard three weeks after the sisters were released from prison in 2011, they were arrested in Bath after trying to pass off 20 notes that had been withdrawn from circulation. One creditor, a cousin, has sued her in court, saying she must remarry to clear her debt. "I have no idea how we will get out of this situation," she says. Xu says her brother went overseas after his mother was diagnosed with cancer. I was on my own and then a helicopter came.". Chinese 'wake' as cockle-pickers return - The Irish Times The Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority has reaffirmed its commitment to protecting vulnerable and exploited workers on the 15 th anniversary of the Morecambe Bay cockling disaster.. Twenty-three Chinese cockle pickers drowned after being trapped by incoming tides off the Lancashire coast on the evening of 5 February 2004, with a further 15 surviving. When the creditors come knocking - at least once a month for the past three years - he begs for more time. ", She shows me round her home. But, unlike his father, he refused to accept that poverty was his lot in life. One of them, Li Hua, was within seconds of becoming a victim. The sculpture can be easy to miss. Morecambe Bay cockling disaster survivor Li Hua said he thought he "might just as well wait to die" before the emergency helicopter's thermal imaging camera spotted he was alive in the sea, The victims, aged between 18 and 45, were working to send money back to their families, Jurors in the manslaughter trial were taken out on the sands in a hovercraft, Mick Gradwell, who led the police investigation, claimed other similar disasters could occur. The pair, who operated from houses in the West Midlands, had hidden 22,000 they had made and tried to spend it when they got out of prison. Gone_Gary_T Jazz Record Requests Additional comment actions. Ren was sentenced to 12 years for manslaughter, 6 years for facilitating illegal immigration (to be served concurrently with the manslaughter sentence), and 2 years for conspiracy to pervert the course of justice (to be served subsequent to the manslaughter sentence). He wants to quit school and start work so that he can begin repaying the debt. ", Dependants Wife Yu Lihong, daughter Guo Yuwei 16, son Guo Minghui 9, Debt 300,000 yuan (20,000) Income 750 yuan (50) per month. The only contribution we made to the families is that because we did recover the people we gave them some closure - rather than people being lost at sea.". But I have a few hundred thousand yuan worth of debts. Video, On board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry, Lin Liang Ren was jailed for 14 years in 2006, Research led by Durham University last year, Met Gala 2023: Stars celebrate Karl Lagerfeld, Shooting suspect was deported four times - US media, Yellen warns US could run out of cash in a month, King Charles to wear golden robes for Coronation, HSBC says 1 bank buyout boosted profit by $1.5bn, More than 100 police hurt in French May Day protests. Video, On board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry, Met Gala 2023: Stars celebrate Karl Lagerfeld, Shooting suspect was deported four times - US media, Yellen warns US could run out of cash in a month, King Charles to wear golden robes for Coronation, HSBC says 1 bank buyout boosted profit by $1.5bn, More than 100 police hurt in French May Day protests. I could earn 500 yuan in a month," he says. Ten years ago this week, 23 men and women lost their lives searching for cockles in Morecambe Bay. At least 21 Chinese cockle pickers drowned in treacherous weather conditions in Hest Bank, Lancashire, on the night of 5 February 2004. On a winter's night in February 2004, Li was among 24 cockle pickers cut off by an icy tide as it cut across Morecambe Bay. "So it had a lasting effect on them," he added. Activists are concerned about the impact of funding cuts on working conditions. Most populous nation: Should India rejoice or panic? "I am sorry I couldn't invite you to my place. Under this government's war on regulation and "red tape", migrant workers continue to be subjected to exploitation at work. And with that, he slips back into the background. Su owes more than other families because she had to pay the snakeheads twice: once to get her husband to Germany and then, when he found no work there, to get him to Britain. The cockle permit scheme, under which holders have to complete a safety course and learn about intertidal fishing, was introduced in December 2003, just eight weeks before the disaster. Xu appears to be a reasoning, reasonable woman. In January 2005, just short of a year after her son's death, Shi decided to join him. Country. As the GLA admits, the fines for exploitative employers have been too low to be a deterrent: if an employer makes an annual profit of 100,000 and pays a fine of 500 for breaking GLA rules, he may well carry on regardless. Twenty-one bodies were recovered within hours, a woman's skull was washed up six years on and one man has never been found. We do not have a lot of money but we are happy to go through each day peacefully and I am very thankful And glad to be alive," Mr Hua added. He went to Europe to make up for that: if he had succeeded, everyone would have benefited. Morecambe's RNLI crew worked for 22 hours during the search and rescue operation. But 5,000 miles away in Fujian province, on the south-eastern coast of China, lives are still being sucked into the sands. The 2004 Morecambe Bay disaster saw a group of Chinese cockle pickers drowned by rising tides as they worked gathering shellfish for criminal gangmasters. "When the GLA was first introduced we were hopeful that it would be extended into other sectors but that's proven not to be the case," he said. Typically in such situations, they have each lent 5,000 to 10,000 yuan (330-660) to a family to pay the cash that the snakeheads demand as soon as the migrant has been smuggled to his or her destination. "I stayed in my husband's home for a while. All four were convicted of money laundering at Birmingham Crown Court on September 20. "Each family lends about 5,000 yuan (330). "Sometimes I think if he hadn't died I would live a better life.". Read about our approach to external linking. Yet, 10 years on, campaigners say workers are still . She supports a daughter with learning disabilities, an unemployed husband, an elderly father, a sister who became mentally ill after being raped, and, since February 5 2004, a nephew. Labour MP Jim Sheridan raised the matter with a private member's bill and legislation soon followed which saw the creation of the Gangmasters Licensing Authority (GLA) in 2006. Please, Main image: Morecambe Bay. The Praying Shell artwork, carved in limestone, sits above the site where 23 Chinese cockle pickers working for. After they have paid the rent and utilities, there is barely enough for food. Chief executive Paul Broadbent said it was making progress to ensure "exploitation in all its forms was eradicated and people can work for a good honest wage and get paid that wage". The accident happened after more than 30 cocklers - thought to be Chinese who do not speak English - were caught by rising waters in the Hest Bank . In the Channel 4 documentary Benefits Street, viewers saw a group of Romanian workers who were owed wages by their gangmaster, who also held their passports. And so the debt grows, and grows, devouring the lives of those left behind. VideoOn board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry, I didnt think make-up was made for black girls, Why there is serious money in kitchen fumes. The favoured area for cockle picking is close to the low tide line near the confluence of the Keer Channel and the Kent Channel, approximately 3.5 kilometres (2.2 mi) north of Morecambe. "Someone told them that we had received compensation from the UK, but it is not true. Most are of her wedding. His evidence helped convict Lin Liang Ren of 21 counts of manslaughter, facilitating illegal immigration and perverting the course of justice. "The families who lent us the money are also poor. "I'm scared to go there," says the daughter, Cai Huiling. "I was so tired last year that I had to stop and rest. In 2006, Liverpool gangster Lin Liang Ren was convicted of the manslaughter of the 23 . "I adopted him as my son, but I am worried about his future," sobs his aunt. Mr Hua said: "It was pitch black and I was desperate. An . I know it would influence them in a bad way. File photo: Lancashire Police. The Fujian style of mourning is somewhere between a lament and an undulating, almost melodic wail of misery. Education - supposedly free - costs more than 2,000 yuan (132) a year. The uncle, who earns 1,500 yuan per month, has repaid 20,000 yuan, but still owes 150,000. Only 21 bodies were recovered. I was just numb then, I don't know how, a wave maybe turned me round. A decade ago 23 Chinese cockle pickers drowned when they were trapped by sweeping tides while working in Morecambe Bay, Lancashire. ", At the bottom, he tags on a brief message to their two sons. The children couldn't bear to live in their old house, where the pictures of their dead parents hung on the walls. It is not just economic hardship that drives them, he says, but also tradition and a spirit of adventure. It is the complications that unsettle him. Returning three years later, I find that he seems to have coped as well as can be imagined in the circumstances. This crude architectural hierarchy marks Zhou Xiaomei out as a failure. See. In this boring Europe, I miss you and mother and our relatives very much. "Well, actually, slavery is here and now in the UK and the research which I've done with colleagues suggests there may be upwards of 10,000 people at any one time in the UK in conditions which we would class as modern slavery.". On board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry. The British government has paid to send the bodies home, but it is reluctant to do more for fear of encouraging other illegal immigrants. [2] The Chinese workers were unfamiliar with local geography, language, and custom. Ghosts is a 2006 drama film directed by Nick Broomfield, based on the 2004 Morecambe Bay cockling disaster. Morecambe Bay cockling disaster 15 years on: Lost lives remain "great [12], The 2006 film Ghosts, directed by Nick Broomfield, is a dramatisation of the events leading up to the disaster. "My plan is to work in Kentucky Fried Chicken or McDonald's. In 2006, the average rural income in the province was 4,450 yuan (270 pounds) a year, one-third higher than the Chinese norm - but little more than 1% of most British salaries. The van belonging to the group of missing cockle pickers, in a car park on the foreshore of Morecambe Bay near Bolton Le Sands, where many cockle. Everything he says lives up to the archetype of the downtrodden peasant. "Our thoughts really are of sadness for the families. Read about our approach to external linking. "I've been on those sands man and boy What happened that night was not only awful beyond words it was absolutely avoidable Even when the tide hit them, had they had anybody with them, like me, who knows the area, there was still a safe route off the cockle bed They could have walked to safety.". [9][1], At the subsequent hearing, British cocklers returning to shore on the same evening were reported to have attempted to warn the Chinese group by tapping their watches and trying to speak with them. Our close friends and relatives understand that we cannot pay, but the others gossip about me.". Bo and Yan Li were jailed in 2009 for a scam linked to the deaths of the cockle pickers in Morecambe Bay in 2004. "I don't know how I will be able to pay for him if he succeeds. Jonathan Watts hears the stories of eight victims' families plunged into debt and despair, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, 2023 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. BBC NEWS | England | Lancashire | Deadly sands of Morecambe Bay Barbara Storey, chair of SOS Polonia, a Polish community organisation in Southampton, said: "Abuse in gang labour is still common in the industries where migrants find work." ", The scars of Morecambe's cockling disaster, North Western Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority, AI chatbots 'may soon be more intelligent than us', Russia troop deaths hit 20,000 in five months - US, Palestinian hunger striker dies in Israel prison, The 17 most eye-catching looks at the Met Gala, 'My wife and six children joined Kenya starvation cult', On board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry. Widow Lin Meiqin, who lives in China's Fujian province, has never remarried after her husband Lin YouXing died in the bay at the age of 38. Twenty-three of the group . During lunch with two of the other bereaved relatives, he says nothing, just slurps his noodles and lets others talk of compensation, human rights and justice. But she had to come back because her children's schoolwork was suffering in her absence. The workers were all illegal immigrants, mainly from the Fujian province of China, and have been described as being untrained and inexperienced. Sole survivor cockle picker slave of Morecambe disaster - The Sun