Citizenship for all
The government is finally going to talk about some of the situations facing foreigners (“Special act to address foreigners’ concerns,” Nov. 6, page 3).
The article says that the issue gained attention after Ralph Jensen, a white male according to his Facebook page, wrote a letter about his concerns to the Taipei Times. This appears to be another example of white male privilege.
There are many Philippine, Indonesian and other women of color also living and working in Taiwan. They have been sexually assaulted, not allowed to leave their dormitories at night and their passports have been confiscated by the third parties who brokered their jobs.
This is illegal and a violation of their basic human rights, but if these women of color raise these issues, then they face losing their job and being deported. It seems that the government is only concerned about white male foreigners.
The solution is citizenship now for all who live and want to live in Taiwan. White males who teach English, Philippine women who work in semiconductor factories, Indonesian women who care for the elderly, everyone should have citizenship now. We live here. This is our home.
Taiwan is already a good place to live. Low crime. Low poverty.
Yet these good conditions are not causing a flood of immigrants. Foreigners are only 3 percent of the population. Therefore handing out citizenship would not result in a flood of immigrants.
In the movie 1776, John Adams says that the Declaration of Independence deals with freedom for all Americans.
President of South Carolina John Rutledge, who owned slaves, then asks: “Oh, really? Mr Adams is now calling our black slaves Americans, are they not?”
Adams, who became the second president of the US and was one of the minority of the founding fathers who never owned a slave, replies: “Yes, they are. They are people and they’re here. If there is any other requirement, I’ve never heard of it.”
We foreigners are people and we are here. Citizenship now. Democracy now.
Andres Chang
Taipei
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