Voicing anger against the alleged mistreatment of Thai laborers in Kaohsiung, labor groups yesterday scuffled with police in front of the Council of Labor Affairs' (CLA) headquarters as they demanded council Chairwoman Chen Chu (陳菊) be held to account for a riot on Sunday night.
Chanting "No slavery!" and "Down with exploitation," about 50 members of the Taiwan International Workers' Association, the Committee for Action for Labor Legislation and the Catholic Hope Workers' Center gathered outside the council's offices yesterday in a show of support for the Thai workers.
The groups were also protesting the Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Company's handling of the incident and what they called the Council of Labor Affairs' "indifference."
PHOTO: CNA
"We think the Thai workers' disturbance was totally legitimate because they have endured inhuman treatment and swallowed insults for so long. What they did was to revolt against abuse," said Wong Ying-dah (汪英達), policy director at the Chinese Federation of Labor.
"But the council turned a deaf ear to their misery and did nothing about the treatment they received, which may actually involve criminal behavior," Wong said.
Taiwan International Workers' Association chairwoman Chen Su-hsiang (陳素香) said that the council had been hesitant in dealing with disputes involving foreign laborers. It and other labor groups called on Chen Chu to provide an explanation for the incident and promise that she would undertake to address the various problems facing foreign workers.
"We regret that ever since the incident in which former New Party legislator Elmer Fung (馮滬祥) raped his Filipina housekeeper, Chen Chu never showed up when we asked to see her. She has never responded to us in concrete terms," she said.
Scuffles between the protesters and police broke out when the former attempted to fix placards on the door of the council's headquarters. Police pushed the protesters back and tore up the placards.
"All we do is put up our placards and see how they treat us. This is how they also treat the laborers!" Wang yelled.
Lek Yimprasert, coordinator of the Thai Labor Campaign, joined the protest and urged the authorities to treat unequal treatment of Thai workers seriously.
"Taiwanese employees always call Thai workers "buffalo," but all they are asking for is to be treated just like other human beings," Yimprasert said.
Vice President Annette Lu (
Lu, convener of the Presidential Office's Human Rights Advisory Committee, said the incident had tarnished Taiwan's human-rights record and damaged the nation's image.
"I greatly regret that this has occurred. I will not allow similar things to happen in the future. I hope all workers involved can return to [work as] normal. A comprehensive investigation will be carried out as soon as possible. We will continue to welcome foreign workers to help with construction in Taiwan," Lu said.
She said that since 2000, when the Democratic Progressive Party took power, several universal values including human rights had been prominent on its agenda. She said that protection of those values should not be selectively applied according to nationality, age or sex.
Meanwhile, Premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) said that businesses should not import labor in order to save money.
"When a Taiwanese laborer is available, we should not sacrifice a local laborer's legal right to work and hire a foreign laborer instead. We should not hire a foreign hand just because an employer wants to save money," Cabinet Spokesman Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) quoted Hsieh as saying.
But Hsieh also expressed appreciation toward foreign laborers.
"We must acknowledge their help, appreciate their contribution and take care of them while we must," he said.
"These people have contributed a lot to this country in terms of construction work," he added.
Hsieh urged employers and the council to pay more attention to the daily needs of foreign workers.
"Try to think about things from their point of view. These people have traveled so far to come to Taiwan and work for us. There is no question that we must take good care of them. This is only proper," he said.
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. The ministry today released images showing a Chinese J-16 fighter jet tracked by a F-16V Block 20 jet and the
City buses in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as the Taipei MRT, would on Saturday begin accepting QR code payments from five electronic payment providers, the Taipei Department of Transportation said yesterday. The new option would allow passengers to use the “transportation QR code” feature from EasyWallet, iPass Money, iCash Pay, Jkopay or PXPay Plus. Passengers should open their preferred electronic payment app, select the “transportation code” — not the regular payment code — unlock it, and scan the code at ticket readers or gates, General Planning Division Director-General Liu Kuo-chu (劉國著) said. People should move through the
Snow fell on Yushan (Jade Mountain, 玉山) yesterday morning as a continental cold air mass sent temperatures below freezing on Taiwan’s tallest peak, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Snowflakes were seen on Yushan’s north peak from 6:28am to 6:38am, but they did not fully cover the ground and no accumulation was recorded, the CWA said. As of 7:42am, the lowest temperature recorded across Taiwan was minus-5.5°C at Yushan’s Fengkou observatory and minus-4.7°C at the Yushan observatory, CWA data showed. On Hehuanshan (合歡山) in Nantou County, a low of 1.3°C was recorded at 6:39pm, when ice pellets fell at Songsyue Lodge (松雪樓), a
RSS