A civic group is calling on the government to take steps to protect foreign fishermen whose rights have long been ignored by the Fisheries Agency and the National Immigration Agency.
In a video, a foreign fisherman was talking about his plight after being released from quarantine. At a press conference on Tuesday, a labor rights activist accused Taiwanese brokers of exploiting and keeping a tight control on foreign fishermen.
They are fishermen working for Taiwanese whose boats are registered with another country. As of May, there are 228 Taiwanese fishing boats like that.
The COVID-19 pandemic has made life very difficult for foreign fishermen. Without an entry visa, they are not able to enter Taiwan after being released from quarantine on the boat, nor can they return to their own countries.
A representative with the Taiwan International Workers’ Association (TIWA) says it’s not that foreign fishermen are trying to enter Taiwan illegally. She says there are simply no rules governing fishing boats registered with a foreign county.
Labor rights activists said about 140 foreign fishermen were denied entry to Taiwan last month. They were also not able to go home. Activists urged the government to take steps to help foreign fishermen facing this dilemma.