The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has approved a proposal to set up a committee that will address the needs of the nation’s growing number of immigrant spouses.
The committee is to be composed of 11 to 19 members, half of whom would be new immigrants, the party said on Wednesday last week.
Committee members — which may include non-DPP members — and the chairperson are to be appointed by the DPP.
The committee chairperson’s tenure will be concomitant with that of the DPP chairperson, the party said.
Taiwan Women’s Link secretary-general Tsai Wan-fen (蔡宛芬), who is to serve as the committee’s chief executive, said that she hoped the inclusion of new immigrants in the committee would help the DPP better understand the group’s needs.
The committee will act as an intermediary between new immigrant spouses and the government, DPP spokesman Ruan Jhao-syong (阮昭雄) said.
Its aim will be to safeguard the rights and well-being of those spouses, Ruan added.
The committee will help the government become more multicultural in its outlook and promote exchanges with different cultures, he said.
Tsai said Taiwan Women’s Link had a program that encouraged second-generation immigrants to visit their parents’ home countries to learn more about their roots.
The committee will hold a series of conferences with city and county governments across the nation to gather more input about the daily challenges that new immigrant spouses and their children face, Tsai said.
“We hope these women will feel that Taiwan is their home and that we are here to support them,” she said.
There are about 500,000 immigrant spouses in the nation, including about 150,000 from Southeast Asia, making them the country’s fifth-largest demographic, Ruan said.
“These women are found throughout the country toiling away for Taiwan,” Ruan said, adding that the DPP has a responsibility to hear their concerns.
“Let us join hands with this community to help Taiwan become the friendliest multicultural society,” he said.
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon this morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan between Friday and Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The storm, which as of 8am was still 1,100km southeast of southern Taiwan, is currently expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, the CWA said. Because of its rapid speed — 28kph as of 8am — a sea warning for the storm could be issued tonight, rather than tomorrow, as previously forecast, the CWA said. In terms of its impact, Usagi is to bring scattered or
The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday said it is fully aware of the situation following reports that the son of ousted Chinese politician Bo Xilai (薄熙來) has arrived in Taiwan and is to marry a Taiwanese. Local media reported that Bo Guagua (薄瓜瓜), son of the former member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is to marry the granddaughter of Luodong Poh-Ai Hospital founder Hsu Wen-cheng (許文政). The pair met when studying abroad and arranged to get married this year, with the wedding breakfast to be held at The One holiday resort in Hsinchu
An orange gas cloud that leaked from a waste management plant yesterday morning in Taoyuan’s Guanyin District (觀音) was likely caused by acidic waste, authorities said, adding that it posed no immediate harm. The leak occurred at a plant in the district’s Environmental Science and Technology Park at about 7am, the Taoyuan Fire Department said. Firefighters discovered a cloud of unidentified orange gas leaking from a waste tank when they arrived on the site, it said, adding that they put on Level A chemical protection before entering the building. After finding there was no continuous leak, the department worked with the city’s Department
RSS