A proposed amendment to the Fisheries Act (漁業法) that would no longer require the inclusion of foreign maritime workers under public insurance plans provoked serious opposition yesterday.
Led by Citizen Congress Watch, several civic groups said at a press conference in Taipei that the proposal infringes on the human rights of foreign fishermen in Taiwan and vowed to stop the legislature from passing the bill during scheduled meetings today and tomorrow.
Taiwan employs slightly more than 10,000 foreign maritime workers, with a majority from Indonesia and other Southeast Asian countries.
All three proposed versions of the amendment would allow owners of fishing boats to replace national labor insurance plans for their foreign employees with commercial plans.
One proposed version by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Su Ching-chuan (蘇清泉) would allow employers to omit payment of health insurance for their foreign employees between 2009 and the passage of the amendment.
Another version initiated by former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator Pan Meng-an (潘孟安) — who was elected Pingtung County commissioner last year — would allow commercial options for health insurance plans.
Civic groups questioned the motivations behind the amendment and accused legislators from both parties of aiding employers to evade insurance payments for foreign fishermen.
Given that only 30 percent of employers in the fishing industry currently pay for the national health insurance plans of their foreign employees as required by law, allowing for commercial plans might allow even more employers to dodge payment, Taiwan International Workers Association researcher Wu Jing-ru (吳靜如) said.
The Yilan Fishermen’s Union, a labor rights group based in the county’s Nanfangao Port (南方澳) with more than 2,000 members from Indonesia and the Philippines, also stated its opposition to the amendment.
In a video statement, four union members said in Bahasa Indonesia that they oppose replacing public social security measures with commercial insurance plans, adding that migrant workers “deserved to be treated as humans, not animals.”
Taiwan Human Rights Association deputy secretary-general Shih Yi-hsiang (施逸翔) said that maritime workers require more protection from social security networks compared with other occupations, as they work in a highly dangerous environment.
The activists said the proposed amendments went against principles stated in two UN covenants on human rights — which the legislature signed as legally binding in 2009 — and implied discrimination against migrant workers.
Halfway through the press conference, Lu Ming-chung (魯銘鍾), a legislative aide at Su’s office, interjected and said that the groups’ remarks were baseless.
“Foreign maritime workers are always out at sea, so they will not be able to enjoy the benefits of national health insurance anyway. Why should we require health insurance payments for them?” Lu said.
The activists said that it was inevitable that foreign fishermen would require medical assistance from time to time, adding that the aim of social security measures should be implemented according to principles of social equality.
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
US climber Alex Honnold left Taiwan this morning a day after completing a free-solo ascent of Taipei 101, a feat that drew cheers from onlookers and gained widespread international attention. Honnold yesterday scaled the 101-story skyscraper without a rope or safety harness. The climb — the highest urban free-solo ascent ever attempted — took just more than 90 minutes and was streamed live on Netflix. It was covered by major international news outlets including CNN, the New York Times, the Guardian and the Wall Street Journal. As Honnold prepared to leave Taiwan today, he attracted a crowd when he and his wife, Sanni,
RSS