Civic groups and advocates for new immigrants and foreign migrant workers yesterday urged legislators not to rush through a proposed “new resident rights protection act” (新住民權益保障法), and to hold public hearings and seek feedback from stakeholders.
Legislators are this week scheduled to hold cross-party negotiations on the bill, after the legislature’s Internal Administration Committee last month passed drafts of the act.
The proposal requires wider consultation and input from the public, representatives from the TransAsia Sisters Association, Taiwan Immigration Youth Alliance (TIYA) and Taiwan Association for Human Rights told a news conference in Taipei.
Photo: Lin Che-yuan, Taipei Times
Under the draft bills, the Ministry of the Interior had presented the definition for the term “new resident” as foreigners who have been granted residence in Taiwan, dependent residence, long-term residence or permanent residence, or stateless people, or residents from China, Hong Kong or Macau whose spouse is a Taiwanese national residing in the nation with a registered household.
“We found ambiguities in the draft bills, with some unclear concepts. The definition for ‘new resident’ varies from what is used by different groups, and could uphold class divisions,” TIYA member Liu Chien-ping (劉千萍) said.
“The Ministry of the Interior has not yet held even one public hearing to solicit input and recommendations on these issues. If the regulations in these bills come from piecemeal additions made during cross-party negotiations, then the protections the act is supposed to provide would exist in name only,” Liu said.
“We call for nationwide consultations for participation and input from civil society groups and other affected people,” she said.
Most legislators have a poor understanding of Taiwan’s new immigrants, and hold quite conservative ideas on how to assist them, TIYA member Liu Chun-liang (劉俊良) said.
“Right now, we see bills that are more about promoting ‘assimilation’ into mainstream society rather than protecting the rights of diverse cultural groups,” he said.
“The bills lack enhanced rights protection for new residents, and do not cover many current difficult issues they are facing. For example, the bills aim to better protect white-collar immigrants, but not blue-collar laborers. They also do not cover the urgently needed system for a pool of court interpreters to service the language needs of people from other Asian countries,” TransAsia Sisters Association chairwoman Hung Man-chi (洪滿枝) said.
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
COOLING OFF: Temperatures are expected to fall to lows of about 20°C on Sunday and possibly 18°C to 19°C next week, following a wave of northeasterly winds on Friday The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Sunday forecast more rain and cooler temperatures for northern Taiwan this week, with the mercury dropping to lows of 18°C, as another wave of northeasterly winds sweeps across the country. The current northeasterly winds would continue to affect Taiwan through today, with precipitation peaking today, bringing increased rainfall to windward areas, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said. The weather system would weaken slightly tomorrow before another, stronger wave arrives on Friday, lasting into next week, Liu said. From yesterday to today, northern Taiwan can expect cool, wet weather, with lows of 22°C to 23°C in most areas,
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
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