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Foreign brides face language gap

The language barrier is the biggest problem faced by some 300,000 foreign brides, the Eden Social Welfare Foundation said yesterday.

The foundation said that because foreign brides often encounter language problems and strained relations with their mothers-in-law, it will offer free Chinese-language classes to foreign brides and provide counselling to help them adjust to life in this country.

Foundation officials said that the language barrier is at the root of many problems for foreign brides.

It has not only affected relations between husbands and wives, but has also caused conflict between the brides and their mothers-in-law and adversely impacted their childrens' eduction, they added.

The foundation staged skits yesterday to show the different customs in Taiwan and Vietnam for taking care of new mothers.

Medical professionals were on hand to demonstrate how to take care of new mothers during the first month after giving birth.

The foundation also announ-ced a strategic partnership with another social group, the Around Taiwan Health Care Alliance.

The latter will be donating NT$200,000 (US$5,900) to the foundation for a fund that will assist to foreign spouses of Taiwanese.

Alliance officials said they currently have 13 member hospitals, including such prestigious hospitals as Keelung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chiayi Christian Hospital, and Yuan's General Hospital in Kaohsiung.

In addition to meeting foreign brides' urgent need for medical care, the alliance will complement the activities of the foundation, making up for its deficiency in medical resources, the officials said.

Meanwhile, the government will appropriate NT$3 billion (US$88.2 million) over the next 10 years to finance assistance for foreign spouses of Taiwan residents, Premier Yu Shyi-kun announced yesterday.

Speaking on a visit to families of foreign brides in Fengshan, Kaohsiung County, Yu said that the number of foreign spouses of Taiwan residents has increased to 300,000, making them the fifth largest "ethnic group" in the country.

The government should pay more attention to the lives of these foreign spouses as well as the education of their children, who are a new generation of Taiwanese, Yu said.

The government is therefore prepared to set up a foundation which will spend NT$3 billion over the next 10 years to help foreign spouses of Taiwan residents and their children, he said.

Yu also suggested that foreign spouses form organizations inform authorities of any problems or difficulties they encounter.
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