Today is International Women's Day, a day to salute to the great contributions of the women in this country, as well as those around the world. Although there is still a long way to go, Taiwan is apparently catching up in terms of respect, recognition and rights accorded to women -- giving the government reason to boast about its accomplishments in the areas of sexual equality and promotion of human rights
Ironically, problems associated with some women in this country, namely foreign brides, stand out in stark contrast to this otherwise rosy picture. The question is "why?"
At the risk of stereotyping, it cannot be denied that foreign brides are often economically and/or socially disadvantaged. The same is often true about the men who marry them. For example, police in Taitung County say that many of the men there who married foreigners are either farmers, manual laborers or people with physical or mental handicaps.
In addition, there is often a huge age gap in these cross-cultural marriages. Many military veterans, for example, are marrying Chinese women nearly half their age. Government statistics indicate that as many as 8,000 veterans over the age of 70 have married Chinese women who are under 40 years old.
But it is not just Chinese women who end up with old men. In fact, the Vietnamese government recently aired a TV commercial to warn its women about marrying Taiwanese men. The ad said that most men who married Vietnamese women were either very old or severely handicapped. While such statements may be an unfair exaggeration, it cannot be denied that many men fit the profile.
The sad thing about human nature is that the weak often victimize those who are weaker than themselves. While this is sometimes excused as being due to the need for survival, this kind of conduct is nevertheless unforgivable, if not illegal.
The relationships between husbands and their foreign brides have the potential of being predator-prey relationships. There is a potential for the reverse to be true. Recently, one Chinese bride was lucky enough to get a court injunction against her abusive husband -- one of the few foreign women to do so. At the time, she said that many Chinese brides were tricked into coming to Taiwan -- but others had come in order to trick others. Whether the women are the deceived or the deceivers, their marriages are riddled with problems.
As pointed out by DPP Legislator Chien Chao-tong (
These problems call for government intervention. At present, problems associated with foreign brides are handled by no less than five government agencies. The lack of coordination among these agencies creates serious inefficiency and wastes government resources.
What is urgently needed is one central government unit to handle the problems associated with foreign brides. Therefore, it is encouraging to know that Premier Yu Shyi-kun has already instructed the Ministry of Interior to submit by the end of next month a blueprint for the establishment of such a bureau.
It must be recognized that Taiwan is an immigrant society. It has been for hundreds of years. Immigrants from China, Spain, Holland and Japan all settled on this land. Now, ever-increasing numbers of foreign brides and foreign workers are making Taiwan their home. The government must be prepared to meet the demands of such a diversified immigrant society.
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