I came to Taiwan from Malaysia in 1990 to study and later got married and settled here. Time has flown by and I have been here for 33 years.
Three decades ago, Taiwanese society was conservative and closed-minded, in that people had an implicit preference for blond-haired, blue-eyed Caucasians over other people. Southeast Asians were referred to as “foreign workers” or “foreign spouses.”
This prevalent bias made me hide my identity to better assimilate. However, I have sensed a shift in the past decade.
National Immigration Agency statistics show that there were 589,868 immigrants living in Taiwan as of October last year.
In terms of birth nationality, China is first, followed by Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Japan, Cambodia and South Korea, among others.
About 400,000 are second-generation “new immigrants,” with first and second-generation new immigrants now being a significant ethnic minority, bordering on 1 million. They have brought diverse culture and labor power and have become an essential driving force of national development.
As a new immigrant, I would like to call on the presidential candidates to transcend party politics, overcome ethnic barriers and think about what they could do for this group. Several areas, in particular, are long overdue:
First, we should be referred to as new immigrants, not “foreign spouses” or “foreign brides,” especially as we are not always female. After the amendment to the Nationality Act (國籍法), many have qualified for permanent residency based on professional knowledge or skills.
Second, the legislature should accelerate legislation for new immigrants. A draft was submitted to the Internal Administration Committee of the Legislative Yuan for review in 2017 and 2022, but has stalled. As a result, there is no special law to protect this group’s rights and interests, and no legal basis when dealing with affairs concerning them. Only by passing this legislation could we strengthen their social standing and carry out measures to protect their cultures and rights.
Third, the government should establish a new immigrants affairs committee. As new immigrants and their children have surpassed the population of indigenous people in Taiwan, the nation must establish a specific institution for addressing new immigrant affairs. So far, the unit in charge is the Immigrant Affairs Division of the Ministry of the Interior, but it is a low-ranking division. Establishing a specific agency should help with planning and policymaking for new immigrants and resource concentration. As Taiwan becomes more diverse, people should remember that new immigrants are already part of the population and stop seeing or treating them like outsiders.
Liang Chin-chun is a lecturer in the Feng Chia University College of Humanities and Social Sciences.
Translated by Rita Wang
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