The Thailand Trade and Economic Office (TTEO) is working with Radio Taiwan International (RTI) and several other groups to sponsor trips for eight Thai youngsters to visit their parents working in Taiwan, TTEO officials announced yesterday.
More than 97,000 Thais are working in Taiwan, mostly on major construction projects such as Kaohsiung's rapid transit system.
Last August, more than 1,000 Thai workers in Kaohsiung rioted at their dormitory to protest inhumane treatment by their labor management company, whose top managers were later prosecuted.
Although it was described by authorities as an "isolated" incident, the country's international image was tarnished by reportage of the harsh and inhumane treatment meted out to the workers by their Taiwanese bosses.
Partly in an effort to improve the nation's human-rights image, TTEO and several other foreign worker service providers decided to launch a program to sponsor trips for Thai workers' children to visit Taiwan for family reunions.
RTI noted that many Thais have written to the radio station after listening to its programs on the lives of Thai workers in Taiwan.
TTEO officials said any Thai youngsters who attend high school or an institution of higher education and whose parents are working in Taiwan could apply for one of the eight sponsored trips.
During their week-long stay, the winners will be able to visit their parents' places of employment to gain a better understanding of how their moms or dads are being treated in Taiwan, the officials said.
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