Foreign bride agencies should be better regulated since some pose a threat to social order, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Huang Wei-cher (黃偉哲) said yesterday.
Huang said that according to Ministry of the Interior (MOI) figures, the number of single unmarried people over the age of 15 is on the rise, amounting to 8 million people this year.
Therefore marriage agencies have been mushrooming at an incredible speed and without proper regulation, he said.
Many agencies advertise online, but some may actually be involved in human trafficking and prostitution, Huang said.
Huang added that TV commercials and online advertisements portray the foreign brides in a very negative manner.
"You often see phrases such as `good technique in bed' or `young and hot' on these advertisements," Huang said. "Some agencies even promise virgin brides."
Many agencies ask for a fee of NT$200,000 (US$6,250) to NT$300,000 for the "complete package" which includes a wife, a wedding ceremony and related documents, Huang said.
Most agencies also promise to find another bride for the husband if the first one runs away, he said.
"Foreign brides are turning into objects or products that these agencies try to sell," Huang said.
Huang also said that more than 16,000 Southeast Asian foreign brides have "disappeared" after arriving in Taiwan and most have likely turned to prostitution.
The MOI should set regulations for these foreign bride agencies, Huang said.
In response, Chen Tzu-he (陳子和), section chief of the department of population under the MOI, said that although these agencies are registered as businesses, business laws do not regulate their actions.
However, the ministry has been discussing foreign bride agency management regulations, Chen said.
A committee to crack down on illegal foreign bride agencies was also recently established by the ministry to target those that are involved in illegal immigration, disturbing commercials or advertisements, and human trafficking, Chen said.
Chen said that advertisements for brides from China are not allowed according to article 89 of the Cross-strait Relations Act (
If such commercials are found to exist, agencies placing them will be subject to a fine of NT$100,000 to NT$500,000, he said.
The ministry hopes to enforce such regulations for other foreign brides as well, Chen added.
Huang said that foreign bride agencies threaten social order, resulting in broken families and domestic violence.
Three cases of runaway foreign brides occurred last week.
In each case, the brides were found to have been involved in prostitution.
One of the "missing" brides was discovered singing and playing stripping games in a karaoke parlor.
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