During the Double Ten National Day celebrations on Oct. 10, TikTok videos featuring the events did not only come from Taiwanese. Under videos featuring a carnival at Taipei 101 posted by Indonesians in the city, many migrant workers expressed a surprising sentiment about the country.
A phrase that stood out and became quite popular in comments under Indonesian posts was: “Indonesia is our blood and soil, but Taiwan is our sweat and soil.” The people posting, mostly migrant workers, have put their own spin on a popular Indonesian idiom.
The expression of gratitude is not surprising in the context of Indonesian migrant workers. Data show that Taiwan has some of the better migrant protection and labor laws compared with other popular destinations for them through the regularly amended Employment Service Act (就業服務法).
Taiwan provided a chance for migrant workers, who lack economic opportunities at home, to have better pay and a clearer career path in the country’s domestic sectors and blue-collar fields.
Demand began rising in 1992, with Taiwan coming to heavily rely on overseas workers, mostly in the industry for long-term care of elderly people, in part due to the low cost. Southeast Asian workers have been an indispensable part of the system for three decades, numbering about 700,000 and making up about 80 percent of the 960,000 foreigners in Taiwan. Demand for such workers will increase as the country’s population ages even further.
Most of the workers are from four Southeast Asian nations: Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand.
Another factor pulling migrant workers into the domestic workforce is the welcoming attitude of Taiwan’s democracy and civil society. A study found that residents of urban areas, especially Taipei, are generally more open to migrants because of residents’ broad exposure to cosmopolitan cultures.
This positive impression also happens in reverse, with anecdotal evidence suggesting that Taiwanese are often viewed more favorably than Chinese in Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam, which is especially meaningful given Taiwan’s lack of official diplomatic ties with many of its Southeast Asian partners.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) has promoted “integrated diplomacy” since taking office, which aims to leverage Taiwan’s democratic values and alliances to build diplomatic momentum. The phrase is complemented by the long-running foreign policy strategy of the New Southbound Policy (NSP), including President William Lai’s (賴清德) signature NSP+ to provide Taiwan with more diplomatic flexibility among Indo-Pacific countries.
As China’s regional diplomacy tends to cause some concerns due to its coercive behavior, Taiwan has an opportunity to distinguish itself by innovating its soft power and boosting people-to-people connections with NSP countries. A friendly, welcoming image of Taiwan stands in sharp contrast to China’s assertive approach.
The late academic Joseph Nye, a former US assistant secretary of defense, argued that “attraction,” not only material factors, played a major role in the development of world politics. In the context of Taiwan, the large presence of migrants can solve two problems. Taiwan can fill the labor shortage in its economy while at the same time promoting its image through the experience of migrant workers. The government needs to pay special attention to their needs and vulnerabilities as part of this soft power push.
However, before fully embracing the strategy, Taiwan must also confront some less-visible domestic challenges. As the nation rapidly transitions into a “super-aged society,” the government faces a growing dilemma: Should it focus on promoting social participation among elderly people and ensuring fair employment opportunities for young people, or pursue labor immigration as part of its soft diplomacy and to offset its labor shortages?
The latter could unintentionally trigger public resentment if people feel that their job security is being undermined, creating a political backlash that risks weakening support for Taiwan’s broader foreign policy vision. Even so, research shows promising results in the attitudes of Taiwanese toward migrants, contrasting with Western democracies, where anti-immigrant and far-right sentiments have steadily gained momentum.
There is also a gender-related risk, as female migrant domestic workers face greater discrimination due to their sex and the nature of the work they tend to do, with Taiwan’s labor regulations not covering some of it.
Besides the traditional flow of Southeast Asian workers into Taiwan’s labor market, another unique phenomenon is a rising trend of foreign brides, particularly from Vietnam. This needs extra attention, as it creates closer familial ties and long-term people-to-people relations across the region.
A lot of work remains to be solved, with some stories such as “forced labor” in the Taiwanese fishing industry still continuing to harm its reputation as a fair and safe place for migrant workers.
Better treatment and equal access to services would provide Taiwan with intangible diplomatic benefits that bring short-term and long-term positive perceptions internationally.
Muhammad Erza Aimar Rizky, a graduate of the University of Indonesia, and Nguyen Ngoc Bao Tran, a graduate of Vietnam National University, are recipients of the New Southbound Policy Elite Study Program from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They study international affairs at National Quemoy University.
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