Greenpeace: Thai fishing boats sail far to avoid regulations

FILE - In this Friday, Dec. 9, 2016, file photo, Thai navy officers check the crew of a fishing boat in the waters off the coast of Samut Sakhon, Thailand. Thai fishing boats blocked from Indonesian waters following reports of worker abuses are now traveling thousands of miles to the western Indian Ocean to fish, but the abuses continue, Greenpeace said in a report released Thursday. (AP Photo/Dake Kang, File) (The Associated Press)

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FILE - In this Friday, Dec. 9, 2016, file photo, a Thai navy officer gestures as he inspects a fishing boat in the waters off the coast of Samut Sakhon, Thailand. Thai fishing boats blocked from Indonesian waters following reports of worker abuses are now traveling thousands of miles to the western Indian Ocean to fish, but the abuses continue, Greenpeace said in a report released Thursday. (AP Photo/Dake Kang, File) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this Friday, Dec. 9, 2016, file photo, crew from a fishing boat show their identity cards to Thai navy officers during a search of their boat in the waters off the coast of Samut Sakhon, Thailand. Thai fishing boats blocked from Indonesian waters following reports of worker abuses are now traveling thousands of miles to the western Indian Ocean to fish, but the abuses continue, Greenpeace said in a report released Thursday. (AP Photo/Dake Kang, File) (The Associated Press)

A report by environmental group Greenpeace says Thai fishing fleets are operating thousands of kilometers (miles) from home in unregulated waters to dodge government oversight over illegal fishing and onboard human rights abuses.

The report released Thursday highlighted the case of two boats that returned home after more than a year at sea with six Thai and Cambodian fishermen on board dead from beriberi, a disease caused by Vitamin B deficiency better known for striking sailors more than a century ago.

Both had parked themselves off the coast of Madagascar, where they stayed for months. They transferred their catch to "reefers," refrigerated cargo ships, to avoid government regulators while still getting their fish to market.

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