The head of a work gang of Chinese cockle pickers was jailed for 14 years on
Tuesday after being convicted of the manslaughter of 21 people who drowned on a
wild winter night off northern England in February 2004.
Lin Liang Ren is seen in an
undated handout photo. The head of a work gang of Chinese cockle pickers
was jailed for 14 years on Tuesday after being convicted of the
manslaughter of 21 people who drowned on a wild winter night off northern
England in February 2004. [Reuters] |
A court in
Preston near Morecambe Bay, Lancashire, where the cocklers drowned, convicted
gangmaster Lin Liang Ren last week after a trial lasting nearly six months.
The case highlighted the plight of immigrant -- and often illegal -- workers
unable to enjoy the protection of national labor laws.
On Tuesday, he was sentenced to 14 years in jail for manslaughter, conspiracy
to pervert the course of justice and facilitating illegal entry into the
country.
The court also jailed Lin's girlfriend Zhao Xiao Qing to two years and nine
months for perverting the course of justice and immigration offences. His cousin
Lin Mu Yong was jailed for four years and nine months.
The Chinese men and women, smuggled into England to live effectively as
slaves, drowned due to the "goldrush fever" for cockles, lead prosecutor Tim
Holroyde told the court when the trial opened.
The sands of Morecambe Bay are said to hold millions of pounds (dollars)
worth of cockles, small edible mollusks especially popular in Spain.
Morecambe Bay is known for its rip tides and quicksands. Even local fishermen
familiar with its secrets have had horses and tractors sucked into the sands.
The cocklers, many of whom could not swim, were far out in the bay at low
tide and had no chance of surviving as the sea rushed in on a wet and windy
night.
Li Hua, the only cockler to be rescued alive, said: "In less than a couple of
minutes the water level came to such a high level we just could not move,
literally."
"At that time a lot of memories came back to me, I remembered how hard the
journey was for us to get into the country and I thought to myself perhaps this
is where I am going to die."
Sobbing as he recalled his nightmare, he said; "I thought of my wife and my
children and it brought tears to my eyes."
Asked what he thought of Lin Liang Ren, he said "I hate him. And I think he
is a very cruel person. For his own profit he caused so many people to lose
their lives."