March for Migrant Workers’ Rights
Today was the march in support of Migrant Workers’ Rights here in Taipei. The march was intended to demand improvements to the rights of migrant workers in Taiwan, especially those from Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Viet Nam, Malaysia and other South East Asian countries.
The slogan for the march was “I Want My Day Off”, based upon one of their main demands, that they be guaranteed at least one day off per week. Other demands included safer working conditions, improved pathways to citizenship, higher pay, better ability to change employers as well as others, all of which I would consider exceptionally basic and commonsensical.
These guys are Filipinos who now hold Taiwanese passports, yet who do now have a home registration and therefore do not have Taiwanese identification cards, which are needed for many things in Taiwan. Without them, they are unable to get medical insurance and other benefits that I take for granted. The guy I spoke with has been in Taiwan for 18 years, yet is still in such limbo.
Here, we see supporters from the Hsinchu Catholic Diocese. I also saw a group from the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan, who so often seem to fall on the right side of human rights issues. So often (reproductive rights, gay rights, birth control), I fall on the opposite side of the debate from Christian groups, but here I am glad they recognize and support the important human rights issue of today.
Other groups in attendance included LGBT (lesbian, gay, transgendered and bisexual) groups, members of Taiwan’s Green Party, university groups and many others. I was personally happy to see these groups weigh in.
Speeches were made from atop this truck. I have to admit that the volumes coming out of the horn loaded speakers, coupled with my tinnitus made for a bit of a headache. The speeches were impassioned however, though
I am not sure what this conversation covered, but the guy on the left was very impassioned, while the guy on the right was admirably dispassionate.
And the march begins….
Marchers went out in groups, typically centered around nationality. I could understand why this was done, but I also thought that marching more en mass and ungrouped might have shown a greater solidarity.
The protesters were sincere and serious in demanding their basic rights, though I personally felt that the atmosphere was positive and upbeat, certainly not raucous or threatening. With so many Filipinas, Indonesians, Thais and Vietnamese participating, this was not at all surprising, as SE Asians have a special ability to make everything a celebration.
I am quite certain that Filipinas were the largest group present; no surprise considering how many are employed as home workers in Taiwan.
A big theme of the day was to get the Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) to be more active in ensuring workers’ rights. The march ended up at the CLA office.
Filipinas with the SKM Building in the background.
And the march goes on…
Unfortunately, I had to get back home before the march ended, though I do hope all went well. I would like to say a special thanks to David for allowing me to tag along today. Please check out his take on things here.
Tags: human rights, migrant workers, overseas workers, politics, protest, rally, Taipei, Taiwan
[…] March for Migrant Workers’ Rights | Darren Melrose Photography http://www.darrenmelrose.com/blog/?p=283 – view page – cached March 13th in Taipei held a march in support of migrant workers rights in Taiwan. Many workers from South East Asia were out demanding their basic rights. […]