TAIPEI – Taiwan’s government on April 21 insisted its pilot plan for 1,000 Indian migrant workers in 2026 will only launch if industries demand them and India satisfies strict safety standards, bowing to public backlash over crime fears and a swelling number of “missing” foreign laborers.
With over 870,000 foreign workers, 60% in manufacturing, construction, agriculture, and caregiving, comprising Taiwan’s response to plummeting birthrates and an aging populace, officials seek to diversify beyond Southeast Asian sources like Indonesia and the Philippines. A February 2024 memorandum with New Delhi paved initial recruitment, but Labour Minister Hung Sun-han faced parliamentary grilling.
Kuomintang opponents highlighted India’s sexual violence issues as risks to women and children, while lawmaker Wang Hung-wei flagged over 93,000 “missing” workers lingering in Taiwan as of February, absconders evading oversight amid wage disputes and broker abuses. A petition for indefinite suspension topped 42,000 signatures.
“If the two conditions are not met, then there’s no question of introducing” the workers,” Hung assured legislators, prioritizing safety above all. India’s Taipei office stayed silent. The backpedal underscores tensions in Taiwan’s labor diversification push, balancing shortages against integration woes.