The Minister of the Interior Yu Cheng-hsien (
"Due to humananitarian reasons and the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday, the Chinese government should dispatch ships to pick up these individuals so they can quickly be reunited with their families," Yu said.
Yu paid a visit to the Ching-lu detention center, which houses 700 female and 261 male illegal immigrants.
According to the minister, 150 detainees will be repatriated on Dec. 15.
"We are currently negotiating with China's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait to arrange for your return on Dec. 15," Yu told the illegal immigrants in their cells.
Upon hearing that only 150 detainees would be repatriated soon, some of the detainees were crestfallen.
"I miss my family very much, I hope I will be able to see them very soon," said Liu Lixiu (劉麗秀), a female detainee.
The capacity of the facility in Ching-lu is not sufficient to meet the increasing number of illegal immigrants, which has forced the government to expand existing facilities throughout the country.
According to the ministry, 90 percent of all illegal immigrants are female, but the number of female police officers comprises only 4 percent of police force, which makes supervising female detainees a difficult task.
"To address the shortage of female police officers, the National Police Agency will recruit more women through Central Police University and Taiwan Police College," Yu said.
At the detention center, Yu gave his regards to the detainees.
"Please dress warmly as the weather is getting cold. We will do our best to return you home. However, it is up the Chinese government to work with us," Yu said.
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