Spotlight falls on shady legislators, management firm

Council of Labor Affairs Chairwoman Chen Chu appears in a grave mood at a Cabinet meeting yesterday as she reads documents on the riot in Kaohsiung. PHOTO: CHIEN JUNG-FENG, TAIPEI TIMES

In the wake of Sunday's riot by Thai workers in Kaohsiung, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the People First Party (PFP) yesterday asked the government to conduct an investigation into allegations that lawmakers or government officials have meddled in the foreign labor industry and received kickbacks from brokers.

"We solemnly condemn the policy adopted by the management company to regulate Thai workers building Kaohsiung City's MRT system, because it seriously sabotages the nation's international profile," DPP caucus whip William Lai (賴清德) said.

"We are asking the Ministry of Justice to probe allegations that government officials and lawmakers were involved in the importation of the workers and that they received kickbacks from the broker involved," he said.

Lai said that his caucus would also like to know how a one-person company, Hua Pan, was awarded the contract by Kaohsiung City to bring in the Thai workers, and whether any illegal dealings took place during the selection process.

Lai also said that the justice ministry should investigate whether the treatment of Thai workers by the management company -- an affiliate of Hua Pan -- broke the law.

Lai also requested that the city's MRT company immediately terminate the contract with Hua Pan as a sign of its determination to improve the Thai workers' working conditions.

The Kaohsiung Prosecutor's Office yesterday launched an investigation into the matter in response to Lai's request.

Lai cited media reports claiming that the Thai workers had been inhumanely treated.

One of the claims was that laborers were being paid 46 hours of overtime even though they were working 100 hours of overtime. Another was that laborers were being forced to use tokens valued at 20 percent less than the local currency. Prices at the laborers' canteen in the dormitory compound were also said to be higher than those outside.

There was also speculation that lawmakers, especially members of the legislature's Sanitation, Environment and Social Welfare Committee, were meddling in the importation of foreign labor.

However, Lai said he had not seen any illegal communications or improper conduct taking place at the committee.

Nevertheless, he said that former legislative speaker Liu Sung-pan (劉松藩) has family members who are in the labor broker business for foreign workers.

Liu was sentenced to four years in prison last September for taking kickbacks, but he fled to the US, where he has been ever since.

Lai said he was confident that no DPP lawmaker was involved in any illegal dealings, but he welcomed an investigation into DPP lawmakers to clarify the matter.

PFP caucus whip Lin Hui-kuan (林惠官) said the Council of Labor Affairs owed the public an explanation over which lawmakers were "peddling influence" to lobby for the importation of foreign labor.

He said that the incident in Kaohsiung landed a strong blow on the nation's human-rights record and seriously undermined Taiwan's image.

In response, Council Chairwoman Chen Chu (陳菊) said that she had ignored elements in the industry who had attempted to lobby her.