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SUMMARY:TARN 2024 MEETING: Industry-led Operations of Capital in the 21st Century
DESCRIPTION:Introduction \nThe “Chip War” (Chris Miller\, 2023)\, a battle for the world’s most critical technology and the new Nomos of the earth\, has emerged as the contemporary form of the Cold War. Chips\, as the material foundation and infrastructure\, perform a myriad of functions including algorithms\, computation\, design\, differentiation\, documentation\, memory\, execution\, and automation. As the core driver of the entire system\, chips have propelled all digital-related industries into the age of AI. \nDigital industries are not merely endorsed but are actively demanded by states. On the other hand\, industry has accelerated its own pace in capital operations\, reshaping the logistics and infrastructure of the production-supply chain\, and dramatically altering the global geopolitical landscape. As Heidegger articulated a century ago\, modern technology can be understood as the Gestell\, a gigantic frame and apparatus\, challenging\, gathering\, and ordering humanity to proceed as if destined\, extracting natural and human resources. However\, the digitalized automatic technology of the 21st century\, disguised as innovative development\, has quickened its pace and penetrated all aspects of our lives. \nThrough this workshop\, we intend to examine the profound changes and critical challenges in the complex geopolitical landscape of Asia and the wider world\, including conflicts\, inequities\, and the enduring impacts of colonial power relations. Our focus is on understanding these dynamics in a global context and investigating their contemporary significance. \nSchedule: https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/tarn/tarn-meeting-2024/ \n 
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/tarn-2024-meeting/
LOCATION:Asian Institute of Technology\, 58 หมู่ที่ 9 Phahonyothin Rd\, Khlong Nueng\, Khlong Luang District\, Pathum Thani\, Bangkok\, 12120\, Thailand
CATEGORIES:Workshop
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SUMMARY:Book Discussion at TARN Workshop 2024
DESCRIPTION:The Center on Gender and Forced Displacement is excited to invite you to an insightful book discussion in collaboration with the Transit Asia Research Network (TARN)\, the International Center for Cultural Studies (ICCS)\, and the Mahanirban Calcutta Research Group (CRG)! \nDate: August 2\, 2024 \nTime: 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM (Bangkok Time) \nLocation: Training Room\, AIT Library\, Asian Institute of Technology\, Bangkok\, Thailand \nBook Discussion Highlights: \nIn “Border as Method” by Prof. Sandro Mezzadra and Prof. Brett Neilson\, we will explore the complexities of borders\, a groundbreaking examination of how borders operate and influence global dynamics. This discussion will delve into the intricate ways in which borders affect political\, social\, and economic systems globally. \nAlso we will delve into the struggles of marginalized communities in “The Marginal Nation” by Prof. Ranabir Samaddar\, a profound exploration of the multiple nuances of migration that shows how the marginal becomes central. This discussion aims to highlight the challenges and resilience of marginalized communities and their significant impact on broader societal dynamics. \nTo Register: Link \nTo Join Us Online: Zoom Link \nMeeting ID: 862 5212 3489 \nPasscode: 202785 \nWe look forward to your participation in this engaging discussion and your valuable insights into these critical works. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or need further information (sristy.sen@gmail.com).
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/book-discussion-at-tarn-workshop-2024/
LOCATION:Training Room\, AIT Library\, 58 หมู่ที่ 9 Phahonyothin Rd\, Khlong Nueng\, Khlong Luang District\, Pathum Thani\, Bangkok\, 12120\, Thailand
CATEGORIES:Forum
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DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240922
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SUMMARY:Workshop: The Production and Reproduction of Social Inequalities [Report/Video Recording]
DESCRIPTION:Over the past decade\, research on social inequalities has witnessed significant growth\, shedding light on the enduring and expanding nature of global inequality. This research has increasingly become interdisciplinary\, encompassing diverse fields like sociology\, health\, and environmental studies\, while also adopting an intersectional perspective. While traditional approaches centered on income or education\, contemporary studies delve into understanding how elements such as gender\, race\, ethnicity\, and geographical location play pivotal roles in shaping the uneven allocation of resources and opportunities. \nIn East Asia\, a series of “economic miracles” have occurred since the Second World War\, starting with Japan\, followed by the “Four Asian Tigers\,” and culminating with the People’s Republic of China. These economic success stories have contributed to a statistical reduction in global inequality. Similarly\, South and Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam\, India\, Indonesia\, and the Philippines have experienced similar patterns of rapid economic growth; and in Africa\, countries such as Ethiopia have attempted to join the next wave by adopting ostensibly similar policies. \nHowever\, this process of economic development has not been without its challenges. In certain instances\, the pursuit of economic progress has led to the creation of peripheries characterized by racialized and gendered migrant labor\, as well as the marginalization of indigenous communities\, whose labor and land have been exploited to support the growth of industries. This has resulted in the displacement of populations and exacerbated unequal living conditions. \nChina has been widely recognized as the “factory of the world\,” playing a significant role in global manufacturing and trade. Nevertheless\, during times of uncertain transitions\, other countries or regions in the global South may also emerge as potential centers of production. The generation of displaced populations and unequal living conditions can be attributed\, in part\, to state-led policies and the dynamics of global capitalism. Government policies may prioritize economic growth and attract foreign investments\, often leading to the exploitation of cheap labor and natural resources. This pursuit of profit can exacerbate social disparities and displace vulnerable communities. \nFurthermore\, global hierarchies are a common feature of the political economy of global capitalism. As economic power concentrates in certain regions or countries\, it tends to perpetuate existing inequalities and create new ones. These hierarchies can shift over time\, but the overall structure of economic dominance and exploitation remains. \nThe workshop revolves around the visit of researchers from the University of Cologne’s “The Production and Reproduction of Social Inequalities” research unit to Taiwan. It seeks to understand why endeavors to enhance equality often lead to enduring disparities. The main objective is to promote dialogue between the Cologne researchers and Taiwan-based scholars and students working on inequality. This two-day event\, hosted at the International Center for Cultural Studies at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University\, will primarily explore conceptual frameworks and methodologies for studying inequality. It will particularly focus on migrant labor\, human trafficking\, indigeneity\, statelessness\, and the role of the political economy of capitalism in shaping social inequalities in Asian countries and the global South during the 21st century. Additionally\, the workshop will investigate potential projects related to alternative relationality and solidarities from below. \nWorkshop Agenda\n\n\n\nFri\, Sept 20\nWorkshop Day 1\n\n\n9:30 – 10:00\nWelcoming Remarks and Official Group Photo\nJoyce C.H. Liu (Director\, International Institute for Cultural Studies\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University)\nMichaela Pelican (Professor of Social and Cultural Anthropology & Principal Investigator and Speaker of Research Unit\, Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology\, University of Cologne)\n\n\nHistorical and Political Crisis of Forced Labor\n\n\n10:00 – 11:10\nPanel 1: The International Labor Organization\, Colonialism\, and the History of “Forced Labor”\nModerator: Tu Huynh (Principal Investigator\, Global South Studies Center\, University of Cologne) \n\nBetween Work Regulation\, Integration into the Capitalist Economy and “African Laziness”: The ILO and African Workers\, 1919-1930 – Ulrike Lindner (Professor of Modern History & Principal Investigator\, Department of History\, University of Cologne)\nWhat is Wrong with Forced Labor: Coercion or Exploitation – Ya-Wen Yang (Assistant Research Professor\, Institutum Iurisprudentiae\, Academia Sinica)\n\n\n\n\n11:10 – 11:20\nCoffee Break\n\n\n11:20 – 12:30\nPanel 2: Pan-Asian Politics and Racialized Capitalist Relations\nModerator: Joyce C.H. Liu (Director\, International Institute for Cultural Studies\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University) \n\nPan-Asian Alliances during the International Labor Conferences\, 1920s-1940s – Fabiana Kutsche (Doctoral Researcher\, Department of History\, University of Cologne)\nInequalities and Migrant Labor: Tracing Taiwan’s Racialized Capitalism – Samia Dinkelaker (Asia Research Institute\, National University of Singapore)\n\n\n\n\n12:30 – 13:30\nLunch Break\n\n\n13:30 – 14:40\nPanel 3: Export Processing Zones and Labor Politics\nModerator: Derek Sheridan (Assistant Research Fellow\, Institute of Ethnology\, Academia Sinica) \n\nChallenging the Uneven Power Relation: The Case of Workers Union at Garment Industry in Ethiopia – Meron Zeleke (Associate Professor of Anthropology & Principal Investigator\, Center of Human Rights\, Addis Ababa University)\nTransformation and Exploitation: The Impact of Labor Policies in Mexico’s Maquiladora Industry – Hao-Yu Cho (Post-Doctoral Research\, Institute of Sociology\, Academia Sinica)\n\n\n\n\n14:40 – 14:50\nCoffee Break\n\n\nMigration as Logistical Process\n\n\n14:50 – 16:00\nPanel 4: Transformations in Migration Governance and Forced Labor\nModerator: Ulrike Lindner (Professor of Modern History & Principal Investigator\, Department of History\, University of Cologne) \n\nMigration Governance\, Human Trafficking\, and Gender Inequalities: Cameroon to the Arab Gulf states – Jonathan Ngeh (Senior Researcher\, Global South Studies Center\, University of Cologne) & Michaela Pelican (Professor of Social and Cultural Anthropology & Principal Investigator and Speaker of Research Unit\, Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology\, University of Cologne)\nModern Slavery Crisis and the Transformation of Private Governance: The Case of the Seafood Supply Chains in Taiwan – Yu-Fan Chiu (Associate Professor\, School of Law\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University)\n\n\n\n\n16:00 – 16:10\nCoffee Break\n\n\n16:10 – 17:20\nPanel 5: Forced Labor and Supply Chains\nModerator: Meron Zeleke (Associate Professor of Anthropology & Principal Investigator\, Center of Human Rights\, Addis Ababa University) \n\nCompound Capitalism\, Samoan Supply Chains\, and SEZs: Topological Logistics of Digitalized Labor Extraction in SEA – Joyce C.H. Liu (Director\, International Institute for Cultural Studies\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University)\nPay to Work: Recruitment Fees and the Exploitation of Indonesian Migrant Fishers in Taiwan’s Distant Water Fleets – Jonathan S. Parhusip (PhD student\, Institute of Social Research and Cultural Studies\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University)\n\n\n\n\nSat\, Sept 21\nWorkshop Day 2\n\n\nGoverning Migration and Care\n\n\n9:30 – 10:35\nPanel 6: Beyond Labor: Governing and Challenging Migrant Categories\nModerator: Fabiana Kutsche (Doctoral Researcher\, Department of History\, University of Cologne) \n\nBeyond Boundaries: Migration\, Identity Transformation\, and the Shifting Social Status of Chinese Laborers – Tu Huynh (Principal Investigator\, Global South Studies Center\, University of Cologne)\nNavigating Reproductive Rights and Inequalities: Indonesian Migrant Mothers in Taiwan – Tzu-Chi Ou (Assistant Professor\, International College of Innovation\, National Chengchi University)\n\n\n\n\n10:35 – 10:45\nCoffee Break\n\n\n10:45 – 11:50\nPanel 7: Care\, Migration\, and Inequality\nModerator: Yu-Fan Chiu (Associate Professor\, School of Law\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University) \n\nIndigeneity\, Migration\, and Social Inequalities in Long-Term Care: An Inquiry into the Tayal Community in Taiwan — Wasiq Silan (I-An Gao) (Researcher at the Centre of Ethnic Relations and Nationalism\, University of Helsinki)\nInformal Housing and the Future of Chinese Urban Villages: Observations from Shanghai – Qi Li (PhD student\, Institute of Social Research and Cultural Studies\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University)\n\n\n\n\n11:50 – 13:00\nLunch Break\n\n\nRamifications of Uneven Development\n\n\n13:00 – 14:05\nPanel 8: Moral Geographies and the Reproduction of Inequality\nModerator: Wasiq Silan (I-An Gao) (Researcher at the Centre of Ethnic Relations and Nationalism\, University of Helsinki) \n\nWet Market and Reproduction of Inequality – I-Yi Hsieh (Postdoctoral Fellow\, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University)\nGoing to Africa to Develop: Chinese Migrants and the Moral Geography of Uneven Development in Africa – Derek Sheridan (Assistant Research Fellow\, Institute of Ethnology\, Academia Sinica)\n\n\n\n\n14:05 – 14:25\nBreak\n\n\n14:25 – 15:25\nClosing Remarks and Discussion\nDerek Sheridan (Assistant Research Fellow\, Institute of Ethnology\, Academia Sinica)\nJoyce C.H. Liu (Director\, International Institute for Cultural Studies\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University)\nTu Huynh (Principal Investigator\, Global South Studies Center\, University of Cologne)\n\n\n\n\n所屬子計畫: 遷移、不平等公民、批判法律研究＆大中國體系中社會區域間的地緣政治和文化經濟 \n子計畫主持人: 劉紀蕙、邱羽凡 教授；陳奕麟 教授 \n本中心活動策畫: 劉紀蕙、邱羽凡、陳奕麟 教授 \n教育部高等教育深耕計畫—特色領域研究中心經費補助 \n\n\n\nEvent Recording: Youtube Link\n\nEvent Report\nThe “Production and Reproduction of Social Inequalities” workshop was a two-day collaborative event between the Social Inequalities Research Unit (SIRU) at the University of Cologne\, Germany\, the International Center for Cultural Studies (ICCS) at the National Yang-Ming Chiao Tung University\, Taiwan\, and the Africa-China Research Network in Taiwan based at Academia Sinica. It explored conceptual frameworks and methodologies for studying inequality. \nEach research group focused on different aspects of inequality\, including migrant labor\, human trafficking\, indigeneity\, statelessness\, and the role of the political economy of capitalism in shaping social inequalities in Asian countries and the Global South during the 21st century. \nMichaela Pelican\, professor of Social and Cultural Anthropology at the University of Cologne and the speaker for the research unit “The Production and Reproduction of Social Inequalities: Global Contexts and Concepts of Labor Exploitation\,” stated that the workshop aimed not only to explore conceptual frameworks and methodologies\, fostering exchange and collaboration among participants and organizers. \nDay 1 – September 20\, 2024\nOn day 1\, the workshop was divided into two topics: Historical and Political Crisis of Forced Labor with three panels and Migration as Logistical Process with two panels. \nHistorical and Political Crisis of Forced Labor \nPanel 1: focused on The International Labor Organization\, Colonialism\, and the History of “Forced Labor” with Tu Huynh\, Principal Investigator at the Global South Studies CenterUniversity of Cologne\, as moderator. \nIn this panel\, Ulrike Lindner\, Professor of Modern History at the Department of History\, University of Cologne\, and Ya-Wen Yang\, Assistant Research Professor at Institutum Iurisprudentiae\, Academia Sinica\, explored the role of the ILO and its relationship with forced labor through the lens of an historical approach and a legal approach. \nUlrike Lindner explored the history of the International Labour Organization (ILO) as an entity closely tied to imperialism in creating regulations\, including the standard of forced labor in native labor. She linked the ILO’s standards regarding native labor to the stereotype of “lazy Africans” between 1919 and 1930\, which was used as a justification for Western imperialism to secure cheap labor from colonized populations. \nIn short\, the stereotype of “lazy Africans” has fostered the racist notion of a division of labor between native and European workers\, suggesting that Africans were only capable of working in tropical and Southern climates\, while Europeans were needed to oversee them and perform intellectual tasks. Europeans used this stereotype to enforce the dependency of “lazy Africans” on labor\, as their businesses in Africa relied on cheap labor for plantations\, farming\, and infrastructure. \nIn the mid-1920s\, the ILO began to address forced labor\, but the standards for forced labor were problematic. The ILO attempted to regulate the violent forced labor regimes in the Global South by establishing the Expert Commission on Native Labour in 1926. During discussions\, the colonial experts—almost all of whom were former colonial officials—sought to uphold existing work regimes\, often basing their recommendations on racist assumptions. Ideas of “education for labor” influenced the internal workings of the commission and shaped the discourses within the ILO. \nYa-Wen Yang brought up cases of human trafficking in Taiwan involving Filipino migrant workers to criticize the Taiwanese judiciary’s narrow interpretation of forced labor. Yang discussed the case of Chiang\, the head of a brokerage company who was prosecuted for exploitation through debt bondage. Some of the charges against him included overcharging workers by five times the legal cap\, creating false advertisements\, providing poor living conditions\, and withholding wages and passports. \nThe court determined that he was not guilty for several reasons\, including the claim that his overcharging and withholding of wages and the passport were done with the worker’s consent. Yang viewed the judiciary’s decision as reflective of a coercion-centered and rather than an exploitation-centered perspective\, which prioritizes formal consent and freedom of contract without considering economic necessity and structural inequalities as forms of coercion. These views contrast with the interpretation of forced labor as defined by the ILO C29 standard. \nYang suggested that Taiwan needs a more comprehensive approach to address coercive practices and the broader conditions perpetuating inequality and exploitation. \nPanel 2: focused on Pan-Asia Politics and Racialized Capitalist Relations\, with Joyce C. H. Liu\, Director of the International Institute for Cultural Studies at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University\, serving as the moderator. \nFabiana Kutsche*\, a Doctoral Researcher in the Department of History at the University of Cologne\, explored the voices and contributions of Asian members to the International Labour Conferences from the 1920s to the 1940s and followed patterns of Pan-Asian thought in the debates. Samia Dinkelaker*\, from the Asia Research Institute at the National University of Singapore\, examined Taiwan’s migrant labor system from the perspective of racialized capitalism. She suggested this perspective to describe migrant workers’ intensified exploitation and their segregation from local workers. She discussed how current divisions of workers are related to earlier divisions in Taiwan’s capitalist history\, and which role migrant workers’ racialization plays in the contemporary phase of Taiwan’s capitalism. \nPanel 3: focused on Export Processing Zones and Labor Politics\, with Derek Sheridan\, Assistant Research Fellow at the Institute of Ethnology\, Academia Sinica\, as a moderator. \nIn this panel\, Meron Zeleke\, Associate Professor of Anthropology and Principal Investigator at the Center of Human Rights\, Addis Ababa University\, and Hao-Yu Cho\, Post-Doctoral Researcher at the Institute of Sociology\, Academia Sinica\, explored labor policies and their impact on labor union conditions in Ethiopia and Mexico. \nMeron Zeleke analyzed the weakening of labor unions in the Ethiopian garment industry\, specifically at the Hawassa Industrial Park post-2018. This weakening process aligned with a policy shift towards a developmental state model centered on state-led industrialization. Since the early 2000s\, the Ethiopian government has issued new legislation\, established institutions\, and heavily invested in infrastructural development to enhance manufacturing industries in the country. \nThe new policy was designed to attract foreign investment. In pursuing foreign direct investment\, countries often compromise labor rights and enforce exploitative working conditions to lure multinational corporations. Industrial interests frequently take precedence in such a competitive capitalist landscape\, weakening labor legislation. \nIn 2017\, Ethiopia emerged as the top destination for foreign apparel firms in East Africa and the second largest in Africa. The political transition in Ethiopia in 2018 is celebrated for its significant reforms\, which included expanding political and civic freedoms\, particularly in advocating for labor rights. \nHowever\, the political transition and the ratification of 23 ILO conventions\, including Convention No. 87\, No. 98\, and No. 155\, are insufficient to ensure freedom for labor unions in Ethiopia. Zeleke identified several challenges to the strength of labor unions\, including the persistence of a suppressive industrial tradition regarding associational rights. The obstacles to unionization violate Ethiopia’s international commitments\, the country’s constitution\, the labor proclamation\, and other relevant legal instruments. \nSimilarly\, Hao-Yu Cho examined the impact of labor policies in Mexico\, specifically within the Maquiladora industry\, and their relation to dispatched labor. Mexico initiated the “Border Industrialization Program” (BIP) along the U.S.-Mexico border in the late 1960s to attract foreign investment. The BIP\, along with the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)\, successfully positioned Mexico as a prime production location for global transnational corporations looking to enter the North American market. The Maquiladora became a crucial economic site for foreign investment. \nTo meet the demands of economic development\, the Mexican government frequently introduced new regulations\, including the 2012 labor reform. This reform relaxed labor regulations to attract foreign investment by making hiring and firing practices easier and promoting the growth of temporary employment and dispatched workers. These conditions have led to social fragmentation\, preventing dispatched labor from forming collective bargaining agreements. Additionally\, the frequent movement of workers disrupts social bonds\, weakening solidarity as the precarious nature of their work undermines labor unions. \nMigration as Logistical Process \nPanel 4 focused on Transformations in Migration Governance and Forced Labor with Ulrike Lindner as a moderator. \nJonathan Ngeh\, senior researcher at the Global South Studies Center\, University of Cologne\, and Yu-Fan Chiu\, Associate Professor at the School of Law\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University\, explored migration as a logistical process and its relation to creating modern slavery and human trafficking. \nJonathan Ngeh analyzed the gender dynamics of human trafficking in Cameroon\, focusing particularly on the women who migrate to work in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states. As the starting point\, he referred to the Palmero Protocol to see what is defined as human trafficking in his study cases. \nBased on the Palmero Protocol\, human trafficking is trafficking in persons\, which refers to the recruitment\, transportation\, transfer\, harboring\, or receipt of individuals through various coercive means\, including force\, fraud\, deception\, or abuse of power. It can involve obtaining consent from someone in a position of control over the victim through payments or benefits. \nThe primary goal of trafficking is exploitation\, which encompasses activities such as sexual exploitation\, forced labor\, slavery\, servitude\, and organ removal. \nIn his case\, a woman called Mira was recruited by her pastor under false pretenses\, lying about a job in Kuwait\, withholding important information\, and pocketing the travel expenses sent by the employer. He also charged her additional fees. \nThe primary goal of trafficking is exploitation\, which encompasses activities such as sexual exploitation\, forced labor\, slavery\, servitude\, and organ removal. \nOnce in Kuwait\, her employer confiscated her passport\, forced her to work over 15 hours a day\, and subjected her to physical and verbal abuse. He withheld her pay and demanded repayment of about $3\,000 for travel costs before allowing her to leave. She also faced sexual harassment. Despite escaping three times and seeking help from the recruitment agency that brought her\, they returned her to her abuser and dismissed her complaints about the harassment. \nNgeh explained what Mira has experienced is human trafficking based on the Palmero Protocol. However\, the case did not see any legal pursuit of justice. In conclusion\, he stated that institutional practices\, including migration regulations\, residency policies\, and labor market guidelines\, reinforce structural barriers that disproportionately impact migrant women\, heightening their vulnerability to coercive labor exploitation and sexual abuse. Additionally\, migrants’ interactions with employers and officials in state institutions and businesses further entrench social hierarchies and perpetuate violence against women. \nYu-Fan Chiu discussed modern slavery within the context of the seafood supply chain in Taiwan. She seeks to explore the legal issues related to the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) and its influence on forced labor in non-EU countries. \nTaiwan is not currently a member of the International Labour Organization (ILO). Hence\, Taiwan cannot ratify ILO Conventions C29 and C188. Chiu explained that the concept of forced labor in Taiwan’s legal system differs from that outlined in ILO C29 and that the working conditions for fishers do not align with the standards set by C188. \nTaiwan has its basic labor law\, but for overseas fishers\, Taiwan has specific regulations\, particularly for those recruited at sea. The Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) has established an Overseas Employment System for migrant fishers on Taiwan-flagged vessels in distant water fishing (DWF)\, which effectively excludes these fishers from basic labor law protections in Taiwan. Unfortunately\, this regulation creates injustice and makes them live in vulnerable situations. \nChiu argued that the CSDDD presents an opportunity for Taiwan\, as a non-EU country\, to engage with international law to eliminate forced labor in the seafood supply chain industry. While the CSDDD will not be directly incorporated into Taiwan’s national law\, it is significant given Taiwan’s seafood exports to the EU and the high risk of forced labor in its DWF sector. This research uses Taiwan’s DWF industry as a case study to analyze the legal implications of the CSDDD on forced labor in non-EU countries. \nAlthough the CSDDD includes direct extraterritorial legislation and enforcement measures applicable to third-country companies that meet specific turnover criteria\, it does not bind non-EU countries directly. \nTherefore\, it cannot serve as a legal basis for requiring the Taiwanese government to alter its definition of forced labor or improve working conditions for fishers. Under Pillar One of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs)\, states are responsible for protecting against human rights abuses through effective policies and legislation\, ensuring that businesses within their jurisdiction\, including those operating on Taiwan-flagged vessels in DWF respect human rights throughout their operations. \nPanel 5: focused on Forced Labor and Supply Chains\, with Meron Zeleke as a moderator. \nJoyce C.H. Liu examined the reemergence of Tianxia in 21st-century China by exploring the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Liu argued that the BRI materialized and technologically implemented the Tianxia vision. Chinese emperors historically used the concept of Tianxia to legitimize their governance and strategically organize resources to secure the production and circulation of goods and the stability of the state. The concept of Tianxia also contributed to the tributary system\, which has a darker side\, including collusion and corruption\, underground connections with gangs\, smuggling of goods\, and the kidnapping of forced labor. \nAll aspects of the Tianxia vision are reflected in the BRI\, in which 154 countries and 32 international organizations have signed over 200 cooperation documents for the Belt and Road Initiative by March 2024. China has created a global infrastructure network\, including the Maritime Silk Road\, special economic zones\, and digital infrastructure. However\, the BRI has unintended side effects\, revealing the dark corners of scam compounds and their underground rhizomes\, emphasizing the geo-historical factors and semi-tributary trading practices involved. \nIn the end\, Liu proposed the V – M+ model of digital capital operation in the 21st century\, focusing on the techniques of capital operation through compound capitalism\, or the Samoan Model\, which produces legal exceptional zones. In this model\, “V” is the void with no cost and violence with no law\, indicating that there are no limits to the multiplication of capital. She argued the model integrates transnational corporations\, overseas special economic zones that facilitate various favorable legal exceptions\, and digital automation that accelerates capital flow and human labor extraction transactions. \nJonathan S. Parhusip\, a PhD student at the Institute of Social Research and Cultural Studies\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University\, examined the exploitative recruitment practice among Indonesian migrant fishers who work aboard Taiwanese distant water fishing vessels. Parhusip found the exploitation has been going on since the first time the crew registered to work in Indonesia. The broker from their hometown usually overcharged them for the paperwork involved in the recruitment process. \nThe broker also attempted to deceive them by providing false information regarding wages and contracts. The recruiters\, the broker\, and the state exploit fishers’ vulnerable conditions\, such as being far from land and lacking communication access while at sea. As a result\, the fishers are forced to pay brokerage fees and sign loan agreements\, leading to significant debt\, with their wages often illegally deducted. \nMoreover\, Taiwanese law establishes a lower minimum wage for distant-water fishing than for regular labor\, as outlined in the Taiwan Labor Law. The minimum wage for distant-water fishing is approximately USD 550\, compared to USD 889 for regular labor. Consequently\, the net salary for these fishermen is minimal due to deductions for loans and other additional charges incurred on board. \nOne of Parhusip’s key recommendations is that employers should cover all costs associated with recruitment\, including any fees related to documentation and recruitment processes\, in accordance with international standards on recruitment fees and the “employer pays principle.” \nDay 2 – September 21\, 2024\nOn day 2\, the workshop was divided into two topics: Governing Migration and Care with two panels and Ramifications of Uneven Development with one panel. \nGoverning Migration and Care \nPanel 6: focused on Beyond Labor: Governing and Challenging Migrant Categories with Fabiana Kutsche as moderator. \nIn Tu Huynh’s speculative inquiry\, she explored the intersection of global capitalism\, Chinese labor migration\, and the transformation of social status in the 19th century\, focusing on how migration allowed Chinese laborers to renegotiate their social standing both abroad and within China. She argued that while Chinese laborers in colonial societies faced exclusion and rigid social categories\, their economic success abroad provided moments of mobility that enabled some reconfiguration of China’s strict liangjian (良贱) system of social hierarchy. \nThe liangjian system classified individuals into two main categories: liangmin (良民)\, or good/free commoners (including scholars\, farmers\, artisans\, and merchants)\, and jianmin (贱民)\, or debased/low-status people. This system reinforced the power structures of the Qing dynasty\, serving both as a tool of governance and a mechanism for maintaining social order. \nHowever\, merchants held an ambiguous position within the system\, one that fluctuated based on regional context and economic success. This created a precarious situation for merchants\, where their economic power was acknowledged\, but their social status remained constrained by entrenched cultural norms and legal restrictions. \nDuring the global capitalist transformations of the 19th century\, Chinese laborers and merchants abroad found opportunities to renegotiate the rigid boundaries of the liangjian system. Their economic success overseas often led to higher social status upon returning to China. The prestige associated with wealth\, international experience\, and participation in global markets began to outweigh traditional Confucian ideals that had previously marginalized merchants in Chinese society. \nIn conclusion\, through this inquiry\, Huynh encouraged us to rethink how migration\, beyond its exploitative aspects\, catalyzes social transformation. Economic mobility in global capitalism challenged the stability of pre-existing social systems like the liangjian hierarchy. \nTzu-Chi Ou*\, Assistant Professor at the International College of Innovation\, National Chengchi University\, examined the experiences of Indonesian migrant mothers who give birth and raise children in Taiwan\, focusing on the concept of “short-distance parenting.” \nPanel 7 focused on Care\, Migration\, and Inequality\, with Yu-Fan Chiu as a moderator. \nWasiq Silan (I-An Gao) *\, a researcher at the Center of Ethnic Relations and Nationalism\, University of Helsinki\, delved into the complex dynamics of indigeneity and migration within this vulnerability quandary\, with a specific focus on the Tayal\, Taiwan. \nQi Li\, a Ph.D. student at the Institute of Social Research and Cultural Studies\, National Yang-Ming Chiao Tung University\, presented a territorial contest between the state\, civil society\, and migrant workers through informal housing in urban villages located in Zhangjiang Science City\, Shanghai. \nZhangjiang Science City is the core hub for China’s strategic high-tech industries\, including semiconductors\, biomedicine\, and artificial intelligence. Over the past three decades\, Zhangjiang has transformed from a rural commune into a critical infrastructure supporting China’s high-tech ambitions. This development and the expansion of Zhangjiang Science City have led to several implications\, including urbanization\, land shifts\, and housing problems. To understand the struggles faced by displaced individuals regarding the uncertain conditions of their land\, Qi traced the routes of the Science City’s expansion by mapping the paths of the displaced people. \nIn her analysis of Zhangjiang Science Park\, she proposed the concept of the politics of deterritorialization as migrant territoriality: a territory for displaced persons characterized by fragmented and localized mobilization. While the Science Park territory is typically associated with investment\, innovation\, and advancement\, this migrant territoriality reflects the attempts of displaced individuals to reoccupy and reproduce space by informally reclaiming land\, constructing extralegal housing\, and navigating the irregular boundaries of the Science City. Their reoccupation and reproduction differentiate their territory from that of Zhangjiang Science Park\, even though their location falls under state regulation for the Science Park. \nRamifications of Uneven Development \nPanel 8: focused on Moral Geographies and the Reproduction of Inequality\, with Wasiq Silan (I-An Gao) as a moderator. \nI-Yi Hsieh\, a postdoctoral fellow of the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University\, analyzes the stigmatization of the Asian food market\, especially the wet market\, during the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the Taiwanese food infrastructure. As the pandemic shifted from Asia to Euro-America in early 2020\, “wet markets” became scapegoated in the narrative surrounding the virus\, reflecting broader issues of ecological devastation\, urban trade practices\, and inadequate public health responses. \nHsieh investigated how lockdown measures in 2021 disrupted the food supply chain\, exacerbating food insecurity and social inequality within a working-class community in Taipei. She also brought the translation politics of the term “wet market\,” which originated in Singapore and is often misunderstood in Taiwan and mainland China. \nDerek Sheridan analyzed the decisions and rationales of Chinese migrants moving to Africa and how these relate to transformations in uneven global political economies. He examined the life histories of Chinese migrants and their families in Tanzania and Uganda. \nBased on their stories\, Sheridan found that migrants viewed the continent as an attractive destination for earning money to achieve a better life. Many cited its underdevelopment as an opportunity while claiming to lack the capability to keep up with China’s development or migrate and succeed in America or Europe. \nSheridan explained that for Chinese migrants in Tanzania\, perceiving uneven development feels like time travel. When they look at Tanzania\, it evokes memories of China’s past conditions. The migrants view both China and Africa as still developing\, but within this context\, they either see hope in Africa or see the two regions as distinct. \nSheridan explained that these imaginaries reflect China’s rapid development\, and moving to Africa becomes a journey back to China’s past. At the same time\, this imagination fosters the belief that South-South cooperation can bring development to African countries\, following the flying geese model. However\, it also reinforces hierarchical views of Chinese development and African underdevelopment. \nAt the end of the workshop\, all participants discussed the upcoming collaborative project and publication as a continuation of their work from the workshop. \nNotes: Please be advised that an asterisk (*) indicates that the participant has not authorized the publication of their content. \nThe report is written by Aubrey Kandelila Fanani (IACS Master Programme)
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/workshop-the-production-and-reproduction-of-social-inequalities/
LOCATION:HA Building III\, University Road No.1001\, Hsinchu City\, Taiwan\, 300\, Taiwan
CATEGORIES:Workshop
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20240923T163000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20240923T180000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20240923T045843Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241215T052744Z
UID:54707-1727109000-1727114400@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Screening and Discussion: The Link (2024) [Report]
DESCRIPTION:Moderator: Tu Huynh (Associated researcher\, Global South Studies Center\, University of Cologne) \nDirector: Musquiqui Chihying (join virtually)\, and Lou Mo (join in person). \nLanguage: English (Mandarin Interpretation provided in the post-screening discussion) \nSponsored by the Africa-China Research Network in Taiwan in cooperation with the International Centre for Cultural Studies (NYCU) and the Social Inequalities Research Unit ( University of Cologne). \nThis work is commissioned by The Hong Foundation. \nAbstract \nAs a series of abolitionist movements unfolded in the early 19th century\, Western colonial empires encountered a severe shortage of labour in their tropical plantations worldwide. Coolies from Asia emerged as ideal substitutes\, sustaining production tasks necessary for trade. These coolies\, supplementing the human resource shortfall after the abolition of the slave trade\, not only altered the distribution of agriculture\, commodities\, minerals\, and natural resources in the Global South but also influenced the dispersion and aggregation of Asian ethnicities. From the portraits of coolies captured by British colonists in the past to the blueprint of the “World Digital Brain” crafted by Chinese multinational corporations through submarine cable connections\, The Link endeavors to dismantle the gaze of control technique and colonialism by regarding the islands in the Afrasian Sea as “key points” in this technical network through intricate image appropriation and observation\, thereby reflecting on the history of exchanges in contemporary global waters across intertwined timelines. This film was produced in collaboration with the institute DGAP (German Council on Foreign Relations) in German\, Rongxing Hakka Opera Troupe in Taiwan and the Aapravasi Ghat\, the museum of Coolie history in Mauritius. \n主持人： Tu Huynh (Associated Researcher\, Global South Studies Center\, University of Cologne) \n導演：致穎 Musquiqui Chihying(線上蒞臨)、莫奴 Lou Mo（實體蒞臨） \n語言：英語（映後座談提供中文同步翻譯） \n本活動由台灣非中研究網路贊助舉辦，並由國立陽明交通大學文化研究國際中心、科隆大學社會不平等研究中心共同協辦。 \n本作品由洪建全基金會委託製作。 \n摘要 \n隨著19世紀初一系列廢奴運動的展開，西方殖民帝國在全球的熱帶種植園中遭遇了嚴重的勞動力短缺。來自亞洲的苦力成為理想的替代品，維持貿易所需的生產任務。這些苦力補足廢除奴隸貿易後的人力資源短缺，不僅改變了南半球農業、商品、礦產和自然資源的分佈，也影響了亞洲民族的分散和聚集。從昔日英國殖民者拍攝的苦力肖像，到中國跨國企業透過海底電纜連接打造的「世界數位大腦」藍圖，《鏈結》力圖透過以非亞洲之海的島嶼作為技術網絡中的「關鍵點」，進行複雜的圖像挪用與觀察，試圖瓦解控制技術和殖民主義的凝視，從而反映出當代全球水域在相互交織的時間軸上的交流歷史。此影片是與德國對外關係委員會研究所（DGAP）、台灣榮興客家劇團以及毛里求斯的苦力歷史博物館（Aapravasi Ghat）合製。 \n\nEvent Info｜https://iccs.chss.nycu.edu.tw/zh/activity.php?USN=1508 \nEvent Photo｜https://iccs.chss.nycu.edu.tw/zh/album.php?USN=306 \nEvent Report \nThe Link is a short documentary directed by Musquiqui Chihying and Lou Mo. It explores the connections between migration\, slavery\, forced labor\, extraction\, and control techniques in the Global South\, with a particular focus on Mauritius. The film also highlights the ties between the 19th century Western colonial period\, and 21st century China’s “World Digital Brain” ambitions\, as pursued by Chinese multinational corporations through submarine cable connections. \nAs a starting point\, the film takes the audience to Aapravasi Ghat in the district of Port Louis. This site witnessed the British government’s use of cheap labor to replace slaves after the abolition of slavery. It served as an entry point where migrant laborers were profiled and photographed. They were checked individually and quarantined. Aapravasi Ghat was a place of control for migrant labor. This same mechanism is reflected in China’s “World Digital Brain” and its smart cities today. \n“Making Mauritius a Smart Paradise for All” is a smart city campaign led by the Chinese company Huawei\, which provides technology and services. The directors emphasized that just as the 19th-century British government used photography as a modern technology to profile and control migrant labor\, today\, similar camera ideologies are used to gather data and create algorithms for control. This information is transmitted through submarine cables; as Chihying stated\, “Whoever controls the submarine cables will control the world.” \nThe film also traced migration history and uncovered the presence of Hakka people who had settled in Mauritius during the 19th century. However\, not all Chinese migrants were brought by the British to work as coolies on plantations\, and some came themselves as merchants in search of fortune. \nThe director\, Musquiqui Chihying\, stated that the film is in its preliminary stage and that he and Lou Mo will continue their project. This film was produced in collaboration with the DGAP (German Council on Foreign Relations)\, the Rongxing Hakka Opera Troupe in Taiwan\, and Aapravasi Ghat\, the Museum of Coolie History in Mauritius. \nThis showing was sponsored by the Africa-China Research Network in Taiwan in cooperation with the International Center for Cultural Studies (NYCU) and the Social Inequalities Research Unit at the University of Cologne. \nThe report is written by Aubrey Kandelila Fanani (IACS Master Programme)
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/screening-and-discussion-the-link-2024-report/
LOCATION:Cinema HB326\, HA Building II\, NYCU\, University Road No.1001\, Hsinchu City\, Taiwan\, 300\, Taiwan
CATEGORIES:Film Screening
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20241210T133000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20241210T160000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20241210T072252Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241215T073103Z
UID:54712-1733837400-1733846400@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Screening and Discussion: Clement Town 舒適小鎮
DESCRIPTION:Speaker: The Director LI Kuei-Pi https://www.likueipi.com/ \nDiscussant: Professor Pan Mei-Lin\, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences\, National Yang-Ming Chiao Tung University \nModerator: Dolma Tsering\, Postdoctoral researcher with International Center for Cultural Studies\, NYCU \n\n\n1960-1970年代間，由於冷戰因素與為了防範共產主義的擴張，台灣作為「自由中國」的代表，曾經參與了國際上在南亞一代的系列軍事與政治行動。這些行動橫跨了今日的印度、尼泊爾、緬甸與中國邊境，最西曾抵達巴基斯坦，直到中美建交才逐漸停擺。起初行動主要是為了深入中國蒐集情報，並且阻止共產勢力向外拓展，實際上的作為除了在邊境上建立游擊隊，在印度與尼泊爾設置定居點，同時也在今日信義區設置特殊學校，接運部分散居在邊境上的族群幼童來台就學就養。當時曾經留下大量來自於南亞的報告與影像，這些報告宣稱潛入中國進行軍事行動，實際上則是為台灣工作的當地情報人員，聘僱定居在尼泊爾及中國邊界的村莊居民分別穿上雙方的傳統服飾及軍服，透過擺拍所完成的「假」照片與虛構的註解。除此之外，為了宣傳「難民」為回返「祖國」所做的貢獻，當時也曾經在接運難民的基隆港與松山機場拍攝過系列擺拍照片，讓來自於邊境的族群穿上傳統服飾，與國旗及軍人合影。 \n舒適小鎮（Clement Town）命名自當時受到台灣政府經濟支持，在今日印度北安查爾邦（Uttarakhand）建造的隱密小鎮，這個小鎮是擁有1970年代最先進的供水及供電設備的印度城鎮之一，由為台灣工作的當地情報人員設計、建造，據當時一份政府出版品的紀錄，類似的小鎮在與中國接壤的印度領土上曾多達二十多個，後來得以來台就學的孩童，或多或少與這些城鎮的居民有關在這次的計畫當中，我自當年的檔案中篩選出三組透過擺拍所完成的影像，分別是在相館拍攝的紀念照、在基隆港拍攝的合照，與少女們抵台就學前所拍攝的照片。我邀請表演者與當年參與或間接參與接運計畫及邊境上特殊行動的人們見面，試圖透過交談與詮釋，重新創造出這些照片被拍下前的樣貌，部分在當時的拍攝地點，如基隆港西側二號碼頭、今已成為停車場的特殊學校等地，還原照片被拍攝前所發生的事件。 \n\n\nOrganizer: International Center for Cultural Studies (NYCU) | Sub-project “Migration\, Unequal Citizens\, and Critical Legal Studies”
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/clement-town/
LOCATION:HA Building II\, University Road No.1001\, Hsinchu City\, Taiwan\, 300\, Taiwan
CATEGORIES:Film Screening
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20250117T140000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20250117T163000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20250113T042716Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250113T042737Z
UID:54902-1737122400-1737131400@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Online Forum: China\, BRI and Implications on Digital Governance\, Authoritarianism and Future of Human Rights
DESCRIPTION:🗓️ Date: 2025-01-17 \n⏰ Time: 14:00 – 16:30 (Taipei Time) \n📌 Join the Meeting via link: Zoom Meeting \n📌 Zoom Meeting ID: 839 1373 0956 / Password: 195743 \nForum Language: English \nModerator: Dolma Tsering (Postdoctoral researcher\, International Center for Cultural Studies\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University) \n\n✨About the Forum \nThe rapid evolution of digital technologies and connectivity\, coupled with a new industrial revolution\, has reshaped the societal landscape and geopolitical dynamics of major powers. Data is now regarded as the ‘new gold’\, whilst control over critical technologies has become a geopolitical asset. Although the United States has maintained its leading position in digital power\, China has emerged as a formidable competitor over the past decade. Under President Xi Jinping’s leadership\, China has been engrossed in developing a comprehensive digital grand strategy\, dubbed ‘Digital China’. This initiative aims to expand China’s digital infrastructure both domestically and internationally\, encompassing the development of 5G networks\, provision of technical assistance\, and installation of CCTV cameras. \nWhilst Beijing’s expansion of digital infrastructure through the Digital Silk Road has helped bridge the digital divide in African and South Asian nations\, it has also sparked serious concerns regarding surveillance\, China’s access to and control over data\, and technological standards. This expansion has raised alarms about potential espionage\, coercion\, and monitoring of dissidents and refugees\, thereby threatening human rights protection. \nThis online discussion invites scholars and activists from the Global South to critically examine China’s digital footprint and its implications for human rights. It explores how digital technologies are reshaping logistics\, infrastructure\, and governance mechanisms\, such as Smart Cities and CCTV surveillance systems\, and considers how cyber networks and data collection enhance social control in a complex environment. \n\n✨Topics \n\nThe Digital Silk Road: China’s Infrastructures of Repression\nMichael Caster\, Head of Global China Program\, Article 19\nXi’s Expansion of Digital Repression of Tibetans\nLobsang Gyatso Sither\, Director of Technology\, Tibet Action Institute\nHow China’s Digital Governance Erodes Human Rights and Freedoms in Hong Kong\nCheng Sze Lut\, Former vice-chairman of the Labour Party in Hong Kong. Since the imposition of the National Security Law\, he has lived in exile in Taiwan\nNepal-China Digital Connectivity: BRI and Beyond\nMahesh Kumar Kushwaha\, Research Fellow\, Centre for Social Innovation and Foreign Policy\, Nepal\n\n\nOrganizer： \nInternational Center for Cultural Studies\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University\, MOE-SPROUT 2.0\, Conflict\, Justice\, Decolonization: Asia in Transition in the 21st Century \nResearch Cluster： \n\n✴️ Sub-project 2: The Chip Era and Digital Governance\nPrincipal Investigator: Joyce C.H. Liu\n✴️ Sub-project 3: Migration\, Unequal Citizens\, and Critical Legal Studies\nPrincipal Investigator: Joyce C.H. Liu\, Yu-Fan Chiu\, Mei-Lin Pan
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/china-bri-and-implications-on-digital-governance-authoritarianism-human-rights/
LOCATION:Virtual Event
CATEGORIES:Forum
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20250430T133000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20250430T174000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20250428T070133Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250702T035322Z
UID:54945-1746019800-1746034800@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Academic Symposium: Anniversary of the Human Trafficking Prevention Act Amendment & the Prohibition of Forced Labor
DESCRIPTION:Academic Symposium: Anniversary of the Human Trafficking Prevention Act Amendment & the Prohibition of Forced Labor\n\n**This event will be also conducted online** \n📆 Date: Wednesday\, April 30\, 2025 \n⏰ Time: 13:00–17:40 (Taipei Time) \n Webex access link: Webex meeting link \n Venue: Guangfu Campus\, NYCU R104\, HC Building3；Online Simultaneous interpretation in English \n Organizers: International Center for Cultural Studies 文化研究國際中心 International Center for Cultural Studies、NYCU Law 國立陽明交通大學科技法律學院&科技法律研究所 \n\n Co-organizers: Taiwan Association for Human Rights、Taiwan Labour Front、Work Better Innovations \n 側記：網址
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/academic-symposium-anniversary-of-the-human-trafficking-prevention-act-amendment-the-prohibition-of-forced-labor/
LOCATION:Guangfu Campus\, NYCU R104\, HC Building3
CATEGORIES:Symposium
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20250430T133000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20250430T174000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20250702T035736Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250721T052150Z
UID:54985-1746019800-1746034800@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Academic Symposium: Anniversary of the Human Trafficking Prevention Act Amendment & the Prohibition of Forced Labor
DESCRIPTION:學術研討會：人口販運防制法修法週年與強迫勞動禁止學術研討會\n\n**本次活動亦將在線上進行** \n📆日期： 2025年4月30日，星期三 \n⏰時間： 13:00~17:40（台北時間） \n Webex 存取連結： Webex 會議鏈接 \n 地點：光複校區NYCU R104 HC Building3；英語線上同聲傳譯 \n 主辦單位：國立陽明交通大學文化研究國際中心、國立陽明交通大學科技法律學院（ICCS） \n\n 協辦單位：台灣人權促進會、台灣勞工陣線、Work Better Innovations \n 側記：網站
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/academic-symposium-anniversary-of-the-human-trafficking-prevention-act-amendment-the-prohibition-of-forced-labor-2/
LOCATION:Guangfu Campus\, NYCU R104\, HC Building3
CATEGORIES:Symposium
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Academic-Symposium-Anniversary-of-the-Human-Trafficking-Prevention-Act-Amendment-the-Prohibition-of-Forced-Labor.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20250811T080000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20251231T170000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20250811T124008Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260223T040304Z
UID:55085-1754899200-1767200400@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Public Statement on the You-Fu Fishing Human Trafficking Criminal Case Dukungan atas Pernyataan Publik terkait Kasus Perdagangan Manusia di Kapal You-Fu
DESCRIPTION:Waiting for Justice:\nTaiwan’s Failure to Prosecute the You-Fu Human Trafficking Case Does Not Meet International Legal Standards\n\n\nTaipei\, 11 August 2025 \nAbout the You-Fu Criminal Case\nIn August 2024\, the prolonged withholding of wages of 10 Indonesian fishers onboard the Taiwanese-flagged distant-water fishing vessel You-Fu came to light when Taiwanese civil society organisations and lawmakers held a press conference revealing that the fishers had been working without pay for 15 months. The fishers were owed a total of USD 80\,850 (about TWD 2.64 million) in unpaid wages. \nAfter the press conference\, the vessel owners of You-Fu paid the withheld wages and additionally provided each fisher with about USD 60 (TWD 2\,000). Subsequent investigation by Taiwan’s Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau (Kaohsiung City) identified eight members of the Indonesian crew as victims of human trafficking. As victims of human trafficking\, they were granted the right to temporary residency in Taiwan. Since September 2025\, most victims have remained and are sheltered in Taiwan. \nFollowing the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau’s report\, the Pingtung District Prosecutors Office initiated a criminal investigation against the vessel owners for violating provisions in Taiwan’s Human Trafficking Prevention Act regarding the exploitation of another person’s labour (勞力剝削罪) (Article. 31\, Paragraphs 1-2) and the crime of obtaining financial gain by fraud under Article 339\, Paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code (詐欺取財罪). \nIn June 2025\, civil society received information that the Pingtung District Prosecutors Office had decided to not lodge a criminal lawsuit against the vessel owners\, on the basis that the local prosecutors found no objective evidence that the Indonesian fishers were engaged in labour where their remuneration was disproportionate (勞動與報酬顯不相當)\, thus not meeting the threshold to constitute a human trafficking offense. \nAccording to the paperwork and information received by supporting civil society organisations\, local prosecutors decided to not charge the employers and lodge a criminal lawsuit at the district court on 21 April 2025. This prosecutorial decision\, however\, was not communicated to the Indonesian fishers by the time the supporting civil society organisations became aware of the decision of non-prosecution. By then\, the 10-day period for filing an appeal had already passed. \nWe\, the undersigned.\nWe\, a group of Taiwanese legal scholars and civil society practitioners with years of experience on business and human rights\, are disappointed in the decision of the Pingtung District prosecutors. We regret the deep knowledge gap between what is internationally understood to be the crimes of forced labour and human trafficking versus an out-dated and unrealistic judicial understanding of what constitutes the worst of human exploitation\, falling drastically short of international standards. \nThe failure of the prosecutors to charge the offenders and proceed with a criminal lawsuit is a missed opportunity for Taiwan to protect victims of forced labour\, and prevent similar future abuses. For the Indonesian fishers onboard You-Fu whom judicial authorities have already determined to be victims of human trafficking\, the failure to proceed on a criminal prosecution is justice denied. It potentially has a negative impact on the human rights reputation of the distant-water fishing sector\, the government and the supply chains of Taiwan\, where notable progress on business and human rights have taken place in recent years. \nWe believe the Pingtung District Prosecutors Office’s decision not to prosecute is a grave mistake. It fails to protect victims of forced labour in Taiwan and does not deter similar incidents from occurring. Our reasons are as follows: \n(1) Prosecutors misaligned with international law on what constitutes work without voluntary consent\nThe International Labour Organization (ILO) defines forced labour as “all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily.” There are two key elements in this international definition: the use of coercion (menace of penalty) and the lack of voluntary consent from the worker. \nThe prosecutor’s determination of no evidence to support the charge of human trafficking was made largely based on the fishers’ reportedly having given verbal consent to only receive their wage after docking at port after 15 months at sea\, and they also voluntarily surrendered their passports to the vessel owner for safekeeping. \nThese conditions clearly constitute unfair working conditions and disregard the migrant fishers’ position of vulnerability. Consent must be informed and not obtained under deception and coercion. It is important to note that the legal understanding of coercion extends beyond the use or threats of force to other forms of coercion\, such as “fraud\, of deception\, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability” (UN Protocol to Prevent\, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons\, Especially Women and Children\, Article 3(a)). \nNo one can consent to work in exploitation. Article 4 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states\, without exception\, that “No one shall be held in slavery or servitude.” \nThe International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) further affirms the fundamental prohibition against slavery\, servitude and forced or compulsory labour. In 2009\, Taiwan enacted legislation to incorporate both the ICCPR and the International Covenant on Economic\, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) into Taiwan’s domestic law. Importantly\, this gives both Covenants the same legal status as Taiwan’s national laws. All government authorities\, including the judiciary\, are obligated to uphold the provisions of the ICCPR\, including its prohibition of slavery\, servitude and forced labour\, with the same force and authority as any domestic law. \nEven if the fisher agrees to the work\, if that agreement is shaped by coercion\, deception or misinformation\, then the supposed initial consent cannot be used to justify and validate the labour exploitation. In the You-Fu case\, there is no dispute that the fishers were not paid their wage for 15 months. We believe the local prosecutors had failed to properly investigate the fishers’ disadvantaged position of vulnerability in the employment relationship\, where they were unable to seek help due to them working at sea. \n(2) Even if consent can be taken into account in this case of prolonged wage withholding\, the terms of payment violate the Taiwanese employment contract.\nThe vessel owners stipulated in the labour contract that wages for the fishers would be paid every six months. However\, the Pingtung District Prosecutors Office declined to pursue human trafficking charges against the vessel owners based on claims that the fishers had verbally consented to delay payment until the vessel docked\, after 15 months at sea. \nEven though the withheld wages were eventually paid (with an additional TWD 2\,000) in August 2024\, the terms of payment diverged significantly from the original Taiwanese labour contract. This prolonged withholding of wages (長期扣留薪資) left fishers’ families without meaningful income for over a year. One report highlighted the extent of hardship: one fisher’s family was forced to mortgage their home to cover medical expenses due to the lack of received remittances over 15 months. Under such conditions\, it is questionable whether any fisher would voluntarily agree\, with full and informed consent\, to wait 15 months until the vessel docks to receive their wage. \nThis situation is a clear case of prolonged withholding of wages\, one of the indicators of forced labour as established by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and Taiwan Labor Standard Act\, Article 23\, that wage shall be paid on a regular basis. \nIt also constitutes a violation of Articles 22\, 23 and 27 of Taiwan’s Labor Standards Act\, which stipulates that wages must be paid directly to workers in full and be paid on time\, indicating that this case not only fails to comply with forced labour under international human rights law\, but also a breach of Taiwan’s fundamental labour laws. \n(3) Local prosecutors failed to properly investigate fishers’ working conditions to establish labour exploitation; instead\, prosecutors relied on a formulaic and superficial view of labour abuses as mainly wage disputes.\nThe fishers onboard You-Fu were subjected to intensive\, high-pressure operations\, often working extended hours depending on fishing conditions\, yet they did not receive corresponding overtime pay. The labour they provided was not proportional to the compensation they received. \nIn fact\, overtime and remuneration pay in the distant-water fishing sector is a structural issue that is chronically overlooked by the Ministry of Labor and the Fisheries Agency\, and even the prosecutors\, who fail to recognise the fishers were engaged in work for which the labour provided was disproportionate to the compensation they had received\, particularly with regard to overtime. Despite this\, local prosecutors failed to properly investigate other important indicators of forced labour\, such as the abuse of the fishers’ vulnerability\, deception\, withholding of wages\, and abusive working and living conditions. These are indicators of forced labour as identified by the ILO. \nDespite this\, local prosecutors failed to properly investigate other important indicators of forced labour\, such as the abuse of the fishers’ vulnerability\, deception\, withholding of wages\, and abusive working and living conditions. These are indicators of forced labour as identified by the ILO. \nWithout a proper inquiry and investigation\, the local prosecutors prematurely and erroneously concluded that no criminal charge could be brought under Taiwan’s Human Trafficking Prevention Act. This is a significant oversight that will not only affect the search for justice for the fishers onboard the You-Fu vessel\, but also grossly undermines the development of jurisprudence in human trafficking cases within Taiwan that is properly aligned with international law. \nSupporting Scholars\, Practitioners and Organisations (reflecting ordering in the original Chinese statement)\n\nProf. Yu-Fan Chiu (Associate Professor\, School of Law\, and Research Fellow\, International Center for Cultural Studies (ICCS)\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University)\nDr Bonny Ling (Visiting Professor\, School of Law\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University; and Senior Non-Resident Fellow\, Taiwan Research Hub at the University of Nottingham)\nDr Ya-Wen Yang (Assistant Research Professor\, Institutum Iurisprudentiae\, Academia Sinica)\n\nOrganisations\n\nTaiwan Association for Human Rights (TAHR)\nTaiwan Labour Front (TLF)\nServe the People Association (SPA)\nInternational Center for Cultural Studies (ICCS)\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (NYCU)\nWork Better Innovations\n\nFull Statement Download\nEnglish\nBahasa Indonesia\nMandarin (Traditional Chinese)\nMedia Cards Download\nEnglish\nBahasa Indonesia\nMandarin (Traditional Chinese)\nIndividual and Organization Sign-On\nSign-On Form\nMain Website\nEnglish\nBahasa Indonesia\nMandarin (Traditional Chinese)
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/public-statement-on-the-you-fu-fishing-human-trafficking-criminal-case-dukungan-atas-pernyataan-publik-terkait-kasus-perdagangan-manusia-di-kapal-you-fu/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20251207T123000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20251207T123000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20251201T032256Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251201T033515Z
UID:55097-1765110600-1765110600@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Abolish the work-year limit ! Migrant Workers Rally
DESCRIPTION:Abolish the work-year limit !\nHapus batas masa kerja\nยกเลิกการจำกัดอายุงาน\nXoá bỏ giới hạn làm việc\n\n\n#AbolishTheWorkYearLimit !\nJOIN 2025 Migrants workers Rally\n\n\nAssembly Time: Sunday\, December 7\, 2025\nat 12:30 PM\, March starts at 1:30 PM\nAssembly Location: Ministry of Labor\n(No. 207\, Songjiang Road\, Zhongshan District\, Taipei City)\n\n\nMarch Ending Point: Legislative Yuan\n(No. 1\, Zhongshan South Road\, Zhongzheng District\, Taipei City)\n\n\nMarch Route:\nSongjiang Rd → Minsheng E. Rd (U-turn) → Songjiang Rd → Nanjing E. Rd → Linsen S. Rd → Jinan Rd → Zhongshan S. Rd\n\n\n\n\n\nIn Taiwan\, blue-collar migrant workers are restricted by a 12-year employment limit. Many who wish to continue working here are forced to leave once they reach that limit\, even if they want to stay.\n\n\nIn recent years\, the government introduced the Foreign Intermediate Skilled Workforce Program\, hoping to retain experienced workers. However\, the power to decide whether a worker may stay and apply for intermediate skilled status rests entirely with the employer. As a result\, migrant workers who wish to remain in Taiwan often have no choice but to accept poor conditions and face an even higher risk of exploitation by brokers and employers.\n\n\nUnder the work-year restrictions\, migrant workers are treated like disposable chopsticks — used and discarded. They devote their best years to Taiwan\, yet our society bears almost no responsibility for their retirement security or later-life care. It is blatant injustice.\n\n\nThis year\, we are calling for: All blue-collar migrant workers should be treated the same as other foreign workers — free from work-year limit\, and able to decide for themselves how long they want to stay and work here.\n\n\nWe sincerely invite everyone to join us on 7 December\, to take to the streets and demand the abolition of the work-year limit for blue-collar migrant workers!\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n 
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/abolish-the-work-year-limit-migrant-workers-rally/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20251207T123000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20251207T123000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20251201T034129Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251201T034142Z
UID:55103-1765110600-1765110600@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:廢除工作年限-移工大遊行
DESCRIPTION:廢除工作年限-移工大遊行\n中英印越泰各語言路線圖\n\n\n集結時間：2025年12月07日(日)\n下午12:30集合 13:30出發\n集結地點：勞動部(台北市中山區松江路207號)\n遊行終點：立法院(台北市中正區中山南路1號)\n\n\n遊行路線：\n松江路→民生東路迴轉→松江路→南京東路→林森南路→濟南路→中山南路\n\n\n\n\n\n藍領移工在台灣 #工作年限為12年，許多屆滿年限的移工雖然想繼續留台工作，卻因為年限到了只能無奈離境。\n\n\n近年，政府提出了 #中階聘僱制度，希望吸引技術熟練的勞工留台，但是否留任並協助移工申請中階，#決定權全在於雇主，移工為了留下來，往往只能接受更多不利條件，面對更多被仲介雇主剝削的風險。\n\n\n在工作年限的限制下，#移工就像免洗筷般用完即丟，將最好的青春年華與勞動力奉獻給了台灣社會，我們卻幾乎不需要承擔他們老年的退休保障或照顧，這是赤裸的不公平。\n\n\n今年的我們要主張：\n所有藍領移工，都應該和其他外國勞動者一樣，不受台灣工作年限限制，能自主決定想在台灣工作多久！\n\n\n誠摯地邀請大家，12月7日一起上街，要求廢除藍領移工的工作年限！
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/%e5%bb%a2%e9%99%a4%e5%b7%a5%e4%bd%9c%e5%b9%b4%e9%99%90-%e7%a7%bb%e5%b7%a5%e5%a4%a7%e9%81%8a%e8%a1%8c/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20251210T130000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20251210T160000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20260223T041210Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260223T050602Z
UID:55122-1765371600-1765382400@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:供應鏈與強迫勞動工作坊：消除強迫勞動之政策發展：臺灣、美國與泰國法制對話
DESCRIPTION:供應鏈與強迫勞動工作坊：消除強迫勞動之政策發展：臺灣、美國與泰國法制對話\n\n📆日期： 2025年12月10日 \n⏰時間： 13:10~16:00（台北時間） \n 地點：陽明交通大學光復校區管理二館MB1063教室（英文實體），以及同步線上（中文口譯） \n 主辦單位：國立陽明交通大學文化研究國際中心 （ICCS）、國立台北大學法律學院、國立陽明交通大學科技法律學院、子計畫三「遷移、不平等公民、批判法律研究」 \n\n 側記：網站
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/%e6%b6%88%e9%99%a4%e5%bc%b7%e8%bf%ab%e5%8b%9e%e5%8b%95%e4%b9%8b%e6%94%bf%e7%ad%96%e7%99%bc%e5%b1%95%ef%bc%9a%e8%87%ba%e7%81%a3%e3%80%81%e7%be%8e%e5%9c%8b%e8%88%87%e6%b3%b0%e5%9c%8b%e6%b3%95%e5%88%b6/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20251210T130000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20251210T160000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20260223T043230Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260223T050641Z
UID:55125-1765371600-1765382400@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Supply Chain and Forced Labor Workshop: Policy Developments to Eliminate Forced Labor: A Legal Dialogue among Taiwan\, the United States\, and Thailand
DESCRIPTION:Supply Chain and Forced Labor Workshop: Policy Developments to Eliminate Forced Labor: A Legal Dialogue among Taiwan\, the United States\, and Thailand\n📆 Date: December\, 10\, 2025 \n⏰ Time: 13:10–16:00 (Taipei Time) \n Venue: Room MB1069\, Management Building III\, Guangfu Campus\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University（In-person session in English）\, with simultaneous online interpretation（in Chinese） \n Organizers: International Center for Cultural Studies; School of Law\, National Taipei University; School of Law\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University; Sub-Project III: Migration\, Unequal Citizenship\, and Critical Legal Studies \n\n 側記：網址
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/supply-chain-and-forced-labor-workshop-policy-developments-to-eliminate-forced-labor-a-legal-dialogue-among-taiwan-the-united-states-and-thailand/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260322T130000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260322T170000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20260310T023804Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260310T023804Z
UID:55138-1774184400-1774198800@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Forum on the Release of the “Human Rights Impact Investigation Report on Taiwanese Businesses in Thailand”
DESCRIPTION:[Registration] Forum on the Release of the “Human Rights Impact Investigation Report on Taiwanese Businesses in Thailand” \nDate & Time: March 22\, 2026 (Sunday)\, 13:00–17:00Venue: Elite Lecture Hall (Room 5216\, Building 5)\, Soochow University Cheng-Chung Campus(No. 56\, Sec. 1\, Guiyang St.\, Zhongzheng District\, Taipei)Organizers: Taiwan Transnational Corporations Watch (TTNC Watch)\, Soochow University Human Rights Program\, Chang Fo-Chuan Center for the Study of Human Rights\, Soochow University \nUnder the globalized production model\, companies from developed economies often procure goods or establish factories in developing countries in order to reduce manufacturing costs. In many of these host countries\, labor and environmental regulations tend to be less stringent. In some cases\, authoritarian governments suppress civil liberties\, further weakening protections for workers and communities. When multinational enterprises minimize costs by exploiting labor or damaging the environment within overseas factories or supply chains\, victims frequently face significant obstacles in seeking remedies locally. \nIn response to these challenges\, the international community—led by the United Nations—has in recent years promoted the Business and Human Rights agenda\, encouraging governments and corporations to adopt policies that safeguard labor rights and environmental justice across global supply chains. \nTaiwan is no exception to these global trends. In 1991\, Taiwan transitioned within the global capitalist system from a production base to a capital-exporting economy\, with outward investment exceeding inbound foreign investment for the first time. As a result\, human rights abuses involving Taiwanese enterprises abroad have occasionally emerged\, drawing international concern. From 1993 to 2022\, China (including Hong Kong) remained the primary destination for Taiwanese overseas investment. However\, since 2023\, due to shifts in international political dynamics\, Southeast Asian countries collectively have surpassed China and Hong Kong as the largest recipients of Taiwanese investment. \nIn response to these developments\, Taiwan Transnational Corporations Watch published the “Human Rights and Environmental Impact Report on Taiwanese Businesses in Indonesia” in 2024\, exposing labor violations and environmental damage associated with Taiwanese enterprises operating in Indonesia\, and calling upon corporations to improve their practices and the government to strengthen regulatory oversight. This forum will present the “Human Rights Impact Investigation Report on Taiwanese Businesses in Thailand\,” continuing and expanding civil society’s efforts—following the Indonesia report—to monitor the human rights performance of Taiwanese enterprises in Southeast Asia. \nFaced with negative human rights records involving Taiwanese businesses overseas\, the Taiwanese government has not remained entirely passive. In 2020\, the Executive Yuan released the “Taiwan National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights\,” committing to promote administrative management of transnational investment and extraterritorial jurisdiction in order to ensure that Taiwanese enterprises’ overseas investments do not violate international human rights norms. The plan also emphasizes providing effective remedies for victims in cases where Taiwanese companies or Taiwanese-controlled multinational enterprises engage in activities abroad that infringe upon human rights or damage the environment. \nAfter more than a year of delay\, the revised version of the Action Plan—originally promised by the Executive Yuan to be released by the end of 2024—is reportedly expected to be published soon. In addition\, the government plans to introduce the “Taiwan Corporate Supply Chain Human Rights Due Diligence Initiative\,” which will require enterprises to implement human rights due diligence to identify and prevent human rights risks within their supply chains and to provide remedies when violations occur. \nTaking these two landmark policy initiatives as points of departure\, this forum will also examine Taiwan’s Business and Human Rights policies from a civil society perspective\, offering expectations and recommendations for future improvements. \nInformation source:https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdhome55eGFpRueAVMWUQLuaF4YTwthH8ubcjR-pFSPUNeCuA/viewform?fbclid=IwY2xjawQcYg5leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFjUVFBS0tYT3AyVDc0UGp3c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHg6UKDQomKgr6v9k86sOFyabHO8jUDxmAgnrn-pc5p8DQVuKiBci5xAwq2nD_aem_66MdhrIyANdYkKd0ktLF7g&pli=1
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/forum-on-the-release-of-the-human-rights-impact-investigation-report-on-taiwanese-businesses-in-thailand/
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260322T130000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260322T170000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20260310T024119Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260310T024229Z
UID:55141-1774184400-1774198800@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:《泰國台商人權影響調查報告》發表論壇
DESCRIPTION:【報名】《泰國台商人權影響調查報告》發表論壇\n時間：2026年3月22日（日），13:00-17:00\n地點：東吳大學城中校區（台北市中正區貴陽街一段56號）菁英講堂（第五大樓5216室）\n主辦：台灣跨國企業監察網絡、東吳大學人權學程、東吳大學張佛泉人權研究中心 \n全球化生產模式下，來自先進國家的企業為降低產品製造成本，赴後進國家採購或設廠。而在後進國家的勞動、環境管制通常較為寬鬆，且有些地方由威權政府統治、壓抑公民權利的情況下，當跨國企業在海外的工廠及供應商，以壓榨勞工、破壞環境的方式來「成本最小化」時，受害者往往很難於當地獲得救濟。針對此一狀況，國際上近年由聯合國帶頭提倡「企業與人權」政策，推動各國政府、企業採行，來保障全球供應鏈上的勞動人權與環境正義。 \n台灣，當然沒有外於上述趨勢。1991年，台灣在全球資本主義體系裡，從後進生產基地晉升資本輸出國，對外投資金額首度超出國外來台投資。相應，台灣企業在海外的人權侵害也不時發生，成為引起國際關注的問題。1993到2022年，中國（含香港）長期是台灣對外投資金額最高的地點。2023年起，由於國際政治局勢變動，東南亞各國合計超越中港，接收了最多來自台灣的投資。因應這樣的變化，台灣跨國企業監察網絡於2024年發表《印尼台商人權與環境影響報告》，揭露台灣企業在印尼生產的勞動違規與環境破壞，要求業者改進、政府規範。本次論壇，則將發表《泰國台商人權影響調查報告》，繼印尼之後持續、擴大監督台灣企業在東南亞的人權表現。 \n面對台商在海外的負面人權紀錄，台灣政府並非毫無反應。2020年，行政院公佈《臺灣企業與人權國家行動計畫》，表示將推動「跨國投資行政管理」與「域外司法管轄」，「以確保企業海外投資行為不違反國際人權規範」，並就「在國外進行工商業活動之我國企業或我國企業具控制權的跨國企業有侵害外國人權或環境之行為……提供被害人有效之救濟管道。」而在經過一年多的延宕後，原本按行政院承諾，應於2024年底公佈的新版計畫，據悉終於要在近期面世。另外，還將搭配提出《臺灣企業供應鏈尊重人權方案》，要求企業實施「人權盡職調查」，辨識供應鏈上的人權風險來預防侵害，並在侵害不幸發生時予以救濟。從這兩份指標性的政策文件切入，本次論壇也將由公民社會的觀點，檢視台灣政府的「企業與人權」政策並提出期許、建議。 \n以上資訊轉載自: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdhome55eGFpRueAVMWUQLuaF4YTwthH8ubcjR-pFSPUNeCuA/viewform?fbclid=IwY2xjawQcYyJleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFjUVFBS0tYT3AyVDc0UGp3c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHi3mIbw3CBnGLcI4L9ffzIvNMadG93A9SXh7Eobk68sfFQW81JdZP9_Qn0Yw_aem__9fFPqrETKHu2iLPcF-pnA
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/%e3%80%8a%e6%b3%b0%e5%9c%8b%e5%8f%b0%e5%95%86%e4%ba%ba%e6%ac%8a%e5%bd%b1%e9%9f%bf%e8%aa%bf%e6%9f%a5%e5%a0%b1%e5%91%8a%e3%80%8b%e7%99%bc%e8%a1%a8%e8%ab%96%e5%a3%87/
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DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260413T080000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20261231T170000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20260413T072848Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260423T153349Z
UID:55153-1776067200-1798736400@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Journal Publish: Special Issue: Making Unfree Labour: Consent\, Exploitation\, and the Law
DESCRIPTION:  \nJournal: Innovation In The Social Science \nType: Special Issue \nSpecial Issue Title: Making Unfree Labour: Consent\, Exploitation\, and the Law \nVolume & Issue: Volume 4\, Issue 1\, 2026 \nGuest Editor: Ya-Wen Yang \nPublisher: Brill \nISSN: 2773-0611 \nAccess: https://brill.com/view/journals/iss/4/1/iss.4.issue-1.xml  \nArticles Included: \n\nYa-Wen Yang\, What Is Wrong with Forced Labour: Coercion or Exploitation? Reflections on Taiwan’s Temporary Migrant Worker Scheme\, 4 Innovation in the Social Sciences 5 (2026)\, https://brill.com/view/journals/iss/4/1/article-p5_2.xml\nFabiana Kutsche & Ulrike Lindner\, Between Work Regulation\, Integration into the Capitalist Economy and ‘African Laziness’: The International Labour Organization and African Workers\, 1927–1930\, 3 Innovation in the Social Sciences 31 (2025)\, https://brill.com/view/journals/iss/4/1/article-p31_3.xml\nHao-Yu Cho\, Transformation and Exploitation: The Impact of Labor Policies in Mexico’s Maquiladora Industry\, 4 Innovation in the Social Sciences 45 (2026)\, https://brill.com/view/journals/iss/4/1/article-p45_4.xml\nJonathan Parhusip\, Johanna Lee & Danielle Douglas\, The Kasbon System and the Paradox of Voluntary Entry into Unfree Labor in Taiwan’s Distant Water Fisheries\, 4 Innovation in the Social Sciences 67 (2026)\, https://brill.com/view/journals/iss/4/1/article-p67_5.xml\n\n  \nIntroduction: Making Unfree Labour: Consent\, Exploitation and the Law \nBy Guest Editor Ya-Wen Yang \nThis special issue originated in the workshop ‘The Production and Reproduction of Social Inequalities’\, held on 20–21 September 2024 in Hsinchu\, Taiwan. One of the workshop’s central themes was the relationship between inequality and exploitation. All the articles in this special issue fall within this broad topic. \nMore specifically\, however\, they address the complexities of the conceptualisation of unfree labour through law in particular contexts and historical moments and reflect on the visible and invisible duress that leads to exploitation. They explore how workers’ consent and its absence are managed in the workplace and how efforts to combat forced labour can\, paradoxically\, perpetuate exploitation. \nWhile the contributors take distinctive approaches to the exploration of a range of case studies\, they engage in dialogue with one another on two overarching perspectives. First\, they trace the legal expression of unfree labour as it emerges from political contestation. Second\, they analyse different techniques used to legitimise institutionalised labour control. \nKutsche and Lindner reveal the early controversies of the International Labour Organization (ILO) during its efforts to combat the forced labour imposed on ‘native labour’ in colonies\, which eventually led to ILO Convention No. 29 (1930). The Convention was the first international instrument to tackle forced labour and has been the backbone of the worldwide ban on this inhuman form of labour extraction to this day. \nIn this regard\, the Convention is a political achievement. However\, its creation was overshadowed by racism and colonialism. European colonial powers presumed that forcing Africans to work was a civilising mission to educate the locals in a positive work ethic. The legal formation of forced labour reflects the historical limitation that it required the support of the European powers\, who relied upon and defended the use of forced labour. It thus focuses on managing direct coercion\, while institutions that created economic duress driving indigenous people into poorly paid wage work\, such as poll taxes\, were largely left untouched. \nYang points out how this limitation underlying the Convention has become a contemporary encumbrance in the fight against human trafficking for labour exploitation in Taiwan. The narrow notion of forced labour led domestic judges ruling on human trafficking cases within the Taiwan–Philippines migration corridor to take migrant workers’ signatures on illegal debt agreements with intermediaries at face value. Migrant workers’ apparent consent\, in the eyes of the judges\, legitimised the illegal conduct of the intermediaries. This legal reasoning frustrated the initial purpose of Taiwan’s anti-human trafficking law and further consolidated the exploitative fee structure in place throughout the migration process. \nParhusip\, Lee and Douglas similarly seek to explain the paradoxical voluntariness of debt-financed migration and the deep-rooted coercion beneath it. They study the pervasiveness and burdens of the debts incurred to finance Indonesian fishers’ migration and personal necessities prior to and during their employment by Taiwanese employers—namely\, the kasbon system. Kasbon usually leads to a vicious spiral of debt; an initial debt tricks Indonesian fishers into agreeing to multiple rounds of debt and migration\, causing them to submit to abuses in the workplace. \nParhusip et al. observe that the ILO\, after a long development\, has established the principle of fair recruitment—that migrant workers should not bear the costs and expenses of their migration and employment. The Taiwanese government has also claimed to adhere to this principle under international pressure. However\, it has only performed a gesture of governance\, issuing formalist bans on illegal fee collections. Meanwhile\, the discriminatory laws against migrant fishers\, as well as the business model and profit structures of the intermediaries\, have been left intact. \nFinally\, Cho studies the changing dynamics between maquiladora workers and managers in Mexico following the loosening of regulations on dispatched workers in 2012. This legal change led to a surge of such workers\, who replaced a high percentage of formally employed factory staff. This\, in turn\, caused a shift in the management strategies at the author’s field site. The originally more family-like atmosphere on the production line was replaced by the distant relationships that necessarily accompany the nomadic nature of dispatched work. Dispatched workers also found it harder to organise themselves in the workplace. It thus turns out that the regulatory changes that make the workplace more fragmented function as an indirect means of strengthening control over labour. \nThe four articles represent different intensities of unfreedom on the spectrum of unfree labour. At one pole\, Kutsche and Lindner expose the violent oppression and the exploitation of African indigenous communities under European colonialism. At the other\, Cho documents factory wage-labourers who experience no direct coercion\, despite being threatened by the reserve army of dispatched workers created by neoliberal deregulatory trends. \nBetween these two poles\, Yang and Parhusip et al. highlight the plight of migrant workers. These workers are trapped in the double bind of discriminatory immigration regulations and a snare of debt structures. Because the pole of forced labour under colonialism appears so obviously wrong\, other forms of control over labour may appear less harmful\, less wrong and ultimately ‘not forced’. \nHowever\, the trajectory of long-term efforts to recognise how the institutional deprivation of people’s reasonable options constitutes coercion is precisely the lesson we can learn from the juxtaposition of the case studies here. It is exactly because unfreedom and exploitation can come in different shapes and degrees—and because their recognition is always a political struggle—that we need to analyse how coercion is read as benign and how the law is used to legitimise economic duress as consent. This special issue seeks to do just that. \nThe original workshop was a collaboration between the International Centre for Cultural Studies (ICCS) at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University\, the Social Inequalities Research Unit at the University of Cologne and the Africa–China Research Network at Academia Sinica. We thank those whose contributions made this collection possible. Among them are Professor Poe Yu-ze Wan\, Chief Editor of this journal\, and Professor Joyce C.H. Liu\, Director of the ICCS. \n\n\n\n\n\nMigration\, Unequal Citizens\, and Critical Legal Studies\n\n\n\n\nThis interdisciplinary research cluster belongs to the MOE SPROUT 2.0 “Conflict\, Justice\, Decolonization 2.0: Asia in Transition in the 21st Century“\, operated by the International Center for Cultural Studies\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University\, Taiwan. \nAccording to the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD)\, the total number of international migrants had amounted to 272 million in mid-2019\, up from 173 million in 2000. Compared to 70 million international migrants in 1960\, the figure has increased by 200 million. Among the total number of international migrants\, about 100 million international migrants were from Asia\, and 83 million were migrating within Asia. Most countries in Asia still practice exclusionary politics of citizenship. The migrant workers and stateless persons suffer severe discrimination and even inhuman treatment because of their non-citizen status. \nThe first five-year ICCS project\, “Unequal Citizens and Legal Reform in the Inter-Asian Context” (2018-2022)\, has discussed the theme of “Conflict\, Justice\, and Decolonization” to understand the crux of the problem from the scene of social conflict from the perspective of transnational migration and labor mobility. Our shared concerns include the different forms of social conflict and inequality in third-world countries within the global context. We paid particular attention to the issues of refugees\, mobile laborers\, stateless persons\, and human trafficking under mass migration. We discussed the formation of severely excluded discrimination\, oppression\, and violence as expressed in laws and institutions in different societies. However\, the international labor migration under globalization constantly faces exploitation\, forced labor\, and human trafficking\, particularly in Asia-Pacific. \nThe second five-year project (2023-2027) will focus on analyzing the forced labor risks in the global supply chain and addressing effective practices for eliminating forced labor\, including law enforcement strategy. Our project will continue to deepen the transnational cooperation with research institutions\, research scholars\, and non-governmental organizations to develop more significant contributions to labor rights and access to justice for migrant workers\, stateless populations\, and undocumented workers. We orient our project toward a critical legal study in terms of empirical cases and emancipatory articulation of particular fundamental concepts\, including citizenship.
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/journal-publish-special-issue-making-unfree-labour-consent-exploitation-and-the-law/
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DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260416T080000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260416T170000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20260416T105708Z
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SUMMARY:The “Yu Fu” Forced Labor Civil Case – Third Hearing Court Observation
DESCRIPTION:April 1\, 2026 \nIn September 2024\, eight Indonesian fishers who had previously been employed on the Taiwanese distant-water fishing vessel Yu Fu filed a civil lawsuit before the Pingtung District Court with the assistance of lawyers and labor organizations. They sought payment of wage differentials in accordance with the minimum wage protections under the Labor Standards Act (LSA). The case was first heard in August 2025 and again in November 2025. However\, due to the reassignment and retirement of the presiding judge\, the proceedings were renewed\, and a new judge conducted the first hearing of the case. The third hearing took place yesterday (March 31\, 2026). \nIn addition to four of the plaintiff fishers appearing in court\, members of the Taiwan Business and Human Rights Project\, the Taiwan Association for Human Rights\, the Taoyuan Migrant Workers’ Service Association\, the Stella Maris International Service Center\, Greenpeace\, as well as legal professionals and individuals concerned with migrant worker issues in Taiwan\, were present to observe the proceedings. \n \nWhat Is at Issue in the “Yu Fu” Forced Labor Civil Case? \nThe eight plaintiff fishers worked aboard the Yu Fu between 2023 and 2024\, during which they were subjected to 15 months of unpaid wages and treatment amounting to forced labor. Although the vessel owner later paid the outstanding wages after the case came to light\, the calculation was based on a monthly wage of USD 550 per person (approximately NTD 17\,800). \nThe vessel owner claimed that the USD 550 standard was based on the Act for Distant Water Fisheries and the Regulations on the Authorization and Management of Overseas Employment of Foreign Crew Members by Offshore Fishing Vessels (hereinafter the “Overseas Employment Regulations”). However\, the legislature has never authorized the Ministry of Agriculture to set a minimum wage lower than that prescribed under the LSA. As such\, the Overseas Employment Regulations\, being merely administrative rules\, cannot exclude the application of the LSA. \nThe vessel owner further argued that the Indonesian fishers in this case were “overseas employment” and therefore not subject to the LSA. However\, under the principles of territoriality and flag state jurisdiction\, foreign fishers working on Taiwanese-flagged distant-water vessels are deemed to be working within Taiwan’s jurisdiction. Accordingly\, fishers working aboard the Taiwanese-flagged Yu Fu should be protected under the LSA. \nNote: For further background on the “Yu Fu” civil litigation\, please refer to the dedicated case webpage. \nDo Overseas-Hired Foreign Fishers in Distant-Water Fisheries Fall Under the LSA? \nDuring this hearing\, the court focused on clarifying whether foreign fishers employed through overseas hiring arrangements in distant-water fisheries are still subject to the LSA. \nCounsel for the plaintiffs reiterated the arguments based on territoriality and flag state principles\, and emphasized that: “The LSA establishes minimum labor standards for all workers within Taiwan. As long as a worker performs labor within Taiwan’s jurisdiction\, they are entitled to protection regardless of nationality. Any exclusion from the LSA must be officially announced by the Ministry of Labor. However\, no such exclusion has ever been announced for distant-water fisheries.” Counsel further noted that while the Overseas Employment Regulations distinguish between offshore and onshore hiring\, such distinctions merely regulate recruitment procedures and do not provide a legal basis for excluding the application of the LSA. \nFor migrant workers employed in Taiwan\, certain categories such as domestic workers\, have been excluded from the application of the LSA since January 1\, 1999\, by a formal announcement of the Ministry of Labor. As a result\, domestic migrant workers are not protected under the LSA. However\, this situation differs from that of distant-water fishers\, who have never been officially excluded by the Ministry of Labor. Accordingly\, fishers working aboard the Taiwanese-flagged Yu Fu should still be entitled to wages that comply with the minimum wage requirements under the LSA\, rather than the USD 550 standard unilaterally set by the Ministry of Agriculture. \nDoes Forced Labor Constitute an Infringement of Personality Rights in Civil Law? \nThe court further addressed the plaintiffs’ claim for damages for non-pecuniary harm arising from alleged violations of personality rights due to forced labor. The judge requested clarification on the definition of “forced labor” and its connection to personality rights infringements. \nIn this case\, the fishers were not only deprived of wages for 15 months\, but also subjected to confiscation of identity documents\, insufficient food and drinking water during voyages\, excessive overtime\, and other harsh working conditions. These circumstances indicate that the fishers were compelled to continue working against their will. Given their isolated and vulnerable situation at sea\, with limited ability to seek help or leave\, their freedom was clearly restricted\, constituting forced labor. \nThe judge also referenced a non-prosecution decision issued by the Pingtung District Prosecutors Office on April 21\, 2025. In response\, plaintiffs’ counsel emphasized that the prosecution had not adequately examined whether the circumstances amounted to forced labor\, focusing instead on whether the labor and compensation were grossly disproportionate. Counsel further argued that it is necessary for the plaintiff fishers to testify in court regarding their experiences of forced labor. \nContinued Public Attention Is Encouraged \nIn recent years\, international reports have repeatedly exposed incidents of forced labor involving Taiwanese enterprises. In 2020\, Taiwan’s distant-water fisheries products were included for the first time in the U.S. Department of Labor’s “List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor\,” and have since been listed three times. \nThe International Labour Organization (ILO) defined forced labor as early as 1930 as: “all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily.” Among the ILO’s 11 indicators of forced labor are withholding of wages and abusive working and living conditions. These indicators serve as a warning that when workers continue working despite long-term or systematic non-payment or extremely low wages\, it may not be voluntary but rather the result of coercion. Otherwise\, why would migrant workers who urgently depend on wages continue working under such conditions? \nInternational efforts to combat forced labor focus on addressing violations of human dignity. In Taiwan\, however\, such issues have often been reduced to mere wage disputes\, overlooking their deeper human rights implications. This case highlights the need for Taiwan to align with international human rights standards\, which would also help maintain the global competitiveness of its distant-water fishing industry. \nThe next hearing is scheduled for June 9\, 2026 (Tuesday) at 4:10 PM at the Pingtung District Court. Members of the public are welcome to attend and continue observing how the judiciary addresses forced labor issues. \n \n\n《銪富號》強迫勞動民事案件第三次開庭 法庭觀察\n\n\n2026年4月1日 \n2024年9月八位曾受僱於臺灣遠洋漁船《銪富號》的印尼漁工，在律師和勞動團體的協助下，向屏東地方法院提起民事訴訟，要求漁船公司給付符合《勞動基準法》(下稱《勞基法》)保障的最低工資差額，案件在去(2025)年8月第一次開庭、同年11月第二次開庭，然接連因承審法官調任和退休，因此本次開庭更新論，由新的法官就本案第一次開庭。昨日(2026年3月31日)第三次開庭。 \n除了四位原告漁工到場，台灣企業人權方案成員、台灣人權促進會、桃園市群眾服務協會、海星國際移工服務中心、綠色和平與多位法律背景及關注台灣移工議題的人士都到場關注。 \n《銪富號》強迫勞動民事案件，在爭議什麼？\n八名原告漁工在2023至2024年間在《銪富號》漁船上工作，遭欠薪15個月及歷經涉及強迫勞動的待遇。雖然在案情曝光後，漁船公司隨即補發薪資，但卻是以每人每月 550 元美金（約新台幣17\,800元）計算積欠的薪資。 \n漁船公司聲稱550美元的標準是按照《遠洋漁業條例》與《境外僱用非我國籍船員許可及管理辦法》(下稱《境外僱用辦法》)，但立法者其實未曾在上開規定中授權農業部可以訂立低於《勞基法》的最低工資標準，因此，僅屬行政規則位階的《境外僱用辦法》根本無法排除《勞基法》的適用。 \n《銪富號》漁船又主張本案的印尼漁工是「境外聘僱」，所以不適用《勞基法》，然而，依照屬地原則與船旗國原則，外籍漁工在懸掛台灣旗的遠洋漁船上工作，即形同在台灣境內工作，在懸掛台灣的《銪富號》上工作的漁工，自應受《勞基法》保障。 \n註：關於《銪富號》民事訴訟的詳細背景，請參《銪富號》專屬網頁 \n遠洋漁業境外聘僱的外籍漁工是否適用《勞基法》\n本日開庭，法官首先聚焦於釐清遠洋漁業的漁工，若是「外籍漁工」且是「境外聘僱」，是否仍適用《勞基法》? \n原告漁工的律師除了重申上述屬地原則與船旗國原則的主張之外，更強調：「《勞基法》規範台灣境內所有勞工的勞動條件最低標準，只要勞工在台灣境內工作，不分國籍均受保障；若要排除適用《勞基法》，僅得由勞動部公告，然而，勞動部未曾公告排除遠洋漁業適用《勞基法》。」律師亦強調，縱使《境外僱用辦法》區分境外聘僱和境內聘僱，但這僅是移工境外聘僱方式與流程的規範，而不是排除《勞基法》的依據。 \n對於在我國工作的移工，例如勞動部自1999年1月1日起將家事服務工作者排除適用勞基法，導致家事移工無法獲得勞基法的保障，但這和未曾被勞動部公告排除的遠洋漁工情形不同，在懸掛台灣的《銪富號》上工作的漁工薪資標準自仍應符合《勞基法》最低工資 ，而不是農業部自行創設的550美元。 \n強迫勞動行為是否屬於民事上的人格權侵害行為？\n接續上述的問題，法官對於本案漁工主張因遭受強迫勞動，而請求人格權侵害的精神慰撫金，要求原告說明「強迫勞動的定義」，以及強迫勞動與人格權侵害的關連性。 \n在本案中，漁工在《銪富號》上工作時，不只是遭積欠15個月的薪資，更遭受扣留身分證件、出海期間缺乏足夠的食物和飲用水、超時加班等，惡劣的工作環境等對待，足以顯示這幾位漁工是在於非自願的情形下被迫繼續工作，而在當時孤立與難以求救的脆弱處境中，更無法離開，明顯屬於自由被侵犯的強迫勞動處境。 \n法官當庭提出屏東縣地檢署於2025年4月21日對船東作出不構成《人口販運罪嫌》的不起訴決定。對此，我方律師強調，地檢署在調查過程中，並未就判斷是否構成強迫勞動訊問當事人，而是著重在當事人從事的工作勞動是否有勞動與報酬顯不相當的情形，更有傳訊原告漁工來法庭說明自身被強迫勞動的經歷之必要。 \n歡迎各界持續關注本案， 共同觀察司法界對於強迫勞動的調查程序\n近年來，國際新聞陸續揭露台灣企業中接連發生的各種強迫勞動事件，2020年台灣遠洋漁獲首度被列入美國勞動部發布之「童工及強迫勞動製品清單」，時至今日已三度被列入該清單之中。 \n國際勞工組織（ILO）早在1930年定義強迫勞動為：「以任何懲罰之威脅迫使而致，且非本人自願提供的工作或服務。」在辨識強迫勞動的11項指標中 ，包含扣發薪資（withholding of wages）與苛刻的工作與生活條件（abusive working and living conditions），這是在提醒社會，看到長期或系統性被欠薪或是領取苛刻工資而仍繼續工作的勞工，要有警覺這些勞工可能是遭威脅而非自願工作，否則何以急需工資的移工被欠薪、工資極之下低卻繼續工作？ \n國際間打擊強迫勞動，重點在於對抗這些侵犯人性尊嚴的行為，而台灣各界長期以易將強迫勞動問題簡化為單純的薪資爭議，而未能覺察其中潛藏侵犯人性尊嚴的嚴重問題，本案也在於提醒台灣應接軌國際的人權標準，同時也能有助於維持台灣遠洋漁業在國際間的經濟競爭力。 \n下一次開庭時間預計在2026年6月9日(二)下午16：10屏東地方法院繼續審理此案，歡迎關注案的各界人士到場旁聽。
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/the-yu-fu-forced-labor-civil-case-third-hearing-court-observation/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260427T080000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260427T170000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20260427T084936Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260429T015726Z
UID:55220-1777276800-1777309200@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Taiwan’s Leading Bicycle Manufacturer Sanctioned for Forced Labor: Control Yuan Report Exposes Regulatory Gaps and Oversight Failures
DESCRIPTION:Taiwan’s Leading Bicycle Manufacturer Sanctioned for Forced Labor: Control Yuan Report Exposes Regulatory Gaps and Oversight Failures\nThe Control Yuan’s Investigation Report No. 115\, Social Investigation 0015\, states that Taiwan’s leading bicycle manufacturer\, Company G\, was sanctioned by a Withhold Release Order issued by U.S. Customs and Border Protection for alleged forced labor\, including indicators such as the abuse of vulnerability\, withholding of wages\, and excessive overtime. The Control Yuan found that the Taichung City Government had insufficient prior awareness and that its subsequent investigation was largely perfunctory. The company’s repeated labor-rights violations further reveal a gap between Taiwan’s domestic legal framework and international labor standards. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThe full investigation report can be found at: https://www.cy.gov.tw/CyBsBox.aspx?CSN=1 \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n台灣自行車龍頭涉強迫勞動遭美國制裁：監察院揭露制度落差與地方政府監管失靈\n監察院115社調0015調查報告指出，臺灣自行車龍頭G公司因涉強迫勞動，遭美國CBP發布暫扣令制裁，涉及濫用弱勢、扣發薪資及超時加班等指標。監察院認為，臺中市政府事前掌握不足、事後查證流於形式，且企業屢有勞權違規，凸顯國內法制與國際標準落差。 \n調查報告全文請參: https://www.cy.gov.tw/CyBsBox.aspx?CSN=1
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/taiwans-leading-bicycle-manufacturer-sanctioned-for-forced-labor-control-yuan-report-exposes-regulatory-gaps-and-oversight-failures/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260504T080000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260504T170000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20260504T021642Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260504T021706Z
UID:55229-1777881600-1777914000@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Global Production Networks\, the State\, and Migrant Workers: Governing Labour in the Semiconductor Industry
DESCRIPTION:Time\nMay 4\, 2026 (Monday)\, 13:30– 16:00(GMT+8\, Taiwan Time) \nVenue\nOnsite and online synchronous session\, conducted entirely in Mandarin with English simultaneous interpretation. \nOnsite：\nA401\, Assembly Building I\, Guangfu Campus\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University \nOnline：\nWebex link will be sent to your email. \nOrganizer\nInternational Center for Cultural Studies\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (NYCU)\nSchool of Law\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (NYCU) \nAgenda \n13:10-13:30  Registration \n13:30-15:30  Keynote Speech \nModerator：\nAssoc. Prof. Yu-Fan Chiu\, School of Law\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung  University\nKeynote Speakers：\nAsst. Prof. Ting-Chien Chen\, Department of Geography\, National Kaohsiung Normal University\nDiscussant：\nProf. Mei-Lin Pan\, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University\nDr. Chiung-Chih Chen\, Postdoctoral Research Fellow\, Resilient and Sustainable Development  Center\, National Tsing Hua University \n15:30-16:00 Q&A \n  \n活動時間\n2026年5月4日 (一) 13:30–16:00 \n活動地點\n實體線上同步，提供全程中英文同步翻譯 \n實體：國立陽明交通大學光復校區 綜合一館 A401教室（實體出席可抵專討一次；實體限額40人） \n線上：報名後將以電子郵件寄送 Webex 會議連結 \n主辦單位\n國立陽明交通大學 文化研究國際中心\n國立陽明交通大學 科技法律學院 \n  \n議程 \n13:10-13:30 報到 \n13:30-15:30 大會演講  \n主持人：邱羽凡 副教授（國立陽明交通大學科技法律學院） \n主講人 ：\n陳亭茜 助理教授（國立高雄師範大學地理學系） \n與談人：\n潘美玲 教授（國立陽明交通大學人文社會學系）\n陳炯志 博士後研究員（國立清華大學 永續與韌性發展中心） \n15:30-16:00 問答
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/global-production-networks-the-state-and-migrant-workers-governing-labour-in-the-semiconductor-industry/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260515
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260516
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20260515T063136Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260515T074648Z
UID:55241-1778803200-1778889599@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Da Wang: The first human trafficking court case involving a Taiwanese-owned FOC vessel. Kaohsiung District Court Trial Observation — Call for Participation
DESCRIPTION:Da Wang: The first human trafficking court case involving a Taiwanese-owned FOC vessel. Kaohsiung District Court Trial Observation — Call for Participation\n  \n■ Time:\nMonday\, May 18\, 2026\, 2:20 p.m. \n■ Location:\nCriminal Court\, Courtroom 4\, Kaohsiung District Court\n1F\, No. 188\, Hedong Road\, Qianjin District\, Kaohsiung City \n■ Key Issues for Court Observation and Case Background:\nThe fishing vessel Da Wang is the first non-Taiwanese flag of convenience vessel involving Taiwanese investment to be indicted for human trafficking and brought into judicial proceedings in Taiwan. \nThis case arose from a serious fatal incident on a distant-water fishing vessel in June 2019. The Da Wang\, a flag of convenience vessel invested in by Taiwanese nationals and registered in Vanuatu\, was the site of a violent incident in which Indonesian fisher Sunoto died after being struck on the back of the head by a Taiwanese chief officer. According to Greenpeace’s report Seabound: The Journey to Modern Slavery on the High Seas\, other fishers on board were also subjected to forced labor conditions\, including excessive working hours and wage deductions. \nIn 2020\, the Da Wang docked in Taiwan\, and a Filipino fisher on the same vessel\, Manny\, sought protection from the Taiwanese government. He was later identified as a victim of human trafficking. \nIn 2020\, U.S. Customs and Border Protection issued a Withhold Release Order against seafood harvested by the Da Wang. In the same year\, Taiwan’s fishing industry was listed for the first time by the U.S. Department of Labor on its List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor\, alongside products such as cotton from Xinjiang. \nAfter years of investigation\, the Kaohsiung District Prosecutors Office indicted nine individuals\, including the vessel owner and captain\, in 2022. However\, despite the indictment\, the first-instance proceedings in the Da Wang human trafficking case have yet to conclude. Four years later\, in mid-May 2026\, the case will finally proceed to a preparatory hearing. \nWe welcome all those concerned with the Taiwan-U.S. trade agreement\, distant-water fishers\, business and human rights\, forced labor\, and seafood supply chain issues to join this court observation. \n■ For more information on the Da Wang case\, please see the reference materials below. \n  \n大旺號，首次權宜船成為人口販運司法案件。高雄地院法庭觀察，動員通知！\n  \n■ 時間：2026年05月18日（一）下午2點20分 \n■ 地點：高雄地方法院刑事庭第四法庭（高雄市前金區河東路188號1樓） \n■ 法庭觀察看點與案件背景說明：\n大旺號漁船，是台灣首次有非我籍的權宜船，被以人口販運罪起訴並進入司法程序。 \n這是發生於2019年6月的重大遠洋漁船海上喋血案，臺灣人投資並登記在萬那杜的權宜船「大旺號」，爆發印尼籍漁工 Sunoto 遭台灣籍大副攻擊後腦致死，根據綠色和平的報告「海上奴役」指出，其他漁工也遭到包括超時工作與苛扣薪資等強迫勞動的情事。大旺號於2020年靠岸台灣，同船菲籍漁工 Manny 向台灣政府尋求庇護，並被鑑定為人口販運受害者。 \n2020年美國海關（CBP）對大旺號下達漁獲暫扣令（WRO），台灣漁業也被美國勞工部首度列入「童工與強迫勞動製品清單」，與新疆棉齊名。高雄地檢署經過多年的調查，終於在 2022 年起訴船東、船長等 9 人。起訴後經過漫長的等待，大旺號人口販運案連一審都還沒結束，4年後的2026年5月中終於迎來本案的準備程序。 \n歡迎更多關注台美貿易協定、遠洋漁工、企業人權責任、強迫勞動、以及海鮮供應鍊議題的朋友們，一起參與法庭觀察。 \n■ 更多大旺號相關的資訊，請見下方參考資料
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/da-wang-first-flag-of-convenience-vessel-to-become-a-human-trafficking-judicial-case-kaohsiung-district-court-trial-observation-call-for-participation/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260602T183000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Shanghai:20260602T203000
DTSTAMP:20260612T233402
CREATED:20260525T030045Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260525T030745Z
UID:55264-1780425000-1780432200@transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw
SUMMARY:Trade Policy and Labor Rights: Competition and Convergence
DESCRIPTION:Event Title: Trade Policy and Labor Rights: Competition and Convergence\nIntroduction to the Event:\nAmid the restructuring of global supply chains and intensifying geopolitical competition\, trade policy is no longer limited to tariff reductions. It has increasingly become an important policy instrument for advancing labor rights protection and human rights standards. The National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University School of Law and the International Center for Cultural Studies (ICCS) have long been concerned with this issue and have continued to explore related institutional developments. This event is organized by ICCS Subproject III\, “Migration\, Unequal Citizenship\, and Critical Legal Studies\,” and features Associate Professor Ying-Jun Lin of the Fu Jen Catholic University School of Law as the keynote speaker. The event will be moderated by Associate Professor Yu-Fan Chiu\, the principal investigator of the project\, with Attorney Yen-Po Chen of InfoShare Tech Law Office and Bonny Ling\, Executive Director of Work Better Innovations\, serving as discussants. Together\, they will explore the complex relationship between trade policy and labor rights protection. This lecture will approach the issue from the perspective of international trade law\, analyzing the interaction between trade liberalization and labor rights protection\, while also examining the development and institutional implications of labor provisions in contemporary trade agreements.\nAssociate Professor Ying-Jun Lin specializes in international economic and trade law and regional economic integration. Drawing on the perspective of international trade law\, she will discuss how trade policy\, in the context of global supply chain restructuring\, interacts with labor rights protection\, and will further guide us in reflecting on issues such as forced labor\, supply chain governance\, and geoeconomic competition. \nTime:\nJune 2\, 2026 (Tuesday)\, 18:30–20:30 (GMT+8\, Taiwan Time) \nVenue:\nOnsite and online synchronous session\, conducted entirely in Mandarin with English simultaneous interpretation \nOnsite Venue:\nA402\, Assembly Building I\, Guangfu Campus\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University \nOnline:\nWebex link will be sent to your email after registration \nOrganizers:\nInternational Center for Cultural Studies\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (ICCS-NYCU)\nSchool of Law\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (NYCU LAW)\nSubproject 3: Migration\, Unequal Citizens\, and Critical Legal Studies \nAgenda:\n18:10–18:30 Registration\n18:30–20:10 Keynote Speech\n20:10–20:30 Q&A \nModerator:\nAssociate. Prof. Yu-Fan Chiu\, School of Law\, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University \nKeynote Speaker:\nAssociate. Prof. Ying-Jun Lin\, School of Law\, Fu Jen Catholic University \nDiscussants:\nAttorney Yen-Po Chen\, InfoShare Tech Law Office\nDr. Bonny Ling\, Executive Director\, Work Better Innovations \nLink to Register:\nhttps://forms.gle/2JCdqmYnNz8B9iub6 \n活動名稱：貿易政策與勞動權益的競與合\n活動簡介：\n在全球供應鏈重組與地緣政治競逐的浪潮下，貿易政策不再僅限於關稅減讓，而逐漸成為推動勞動權益保障與人權標準的重要政策工具。國立陽明交通大學科技法律學院與文化研究國際中心（ICCS）長期關注此一議題，並持續探討相關制度發展。本次活動由ICCS子計畫三「遷移、不平等公民、批判法律研究」邀請輔仁大學法律學院林映均副教授主講，並由計畫主持人邱羽凡副教授主持，以及由益思科技法律事務所陳言博律師及 Work Better Innovations 執行長凌怡華博士擔任與談人，共同探討貿易政策與勞動權益保障之間的競合關係。本次演講將從國際貿易法的視角出發，分析貿易自由化與勞動權益保障之間的互動，並檢視當代貿易協定中勞動條款的發展與制度意涵。\n林映均老師專精於國際經貿法與區域經濟整合，將從國際貿易法的視角出發，探討全球供應鏈重組下，貿易政策如何與勞動權益保障產生競合關係，並進一步帶領我們思考強迫勞動、供應鏈治理與地緣經濟競爭等議題。 \n活動時間：\n2026 年 6 月 2 日（二）18:30–20:30 \n活動地點：\n實體線上同步，提供全程中英文同步翻譯 \n實體地點：\n國立陽明交通大學光復校區 綜合一館 A402 教室 \n線上方式：\n報名後將以電子郵件寄送 Webex 會議連結 \n主辦單位：\nICCS 國立陽明交通大學文化研究國際中心\nNYCU LAW 國立陽明交通大學科技法律學院\n子計畫三「遷移、不平等公民、批判法律研究」 \n議程：\n18:10–18:30 報到\n18:30–20:10 大會演講\n20:10–20:30 問答 \n主持人：\n邱羽凡 副教授（國立陽明交通大學科技法律學院） \n主講人：\n林映均 副教授（輔仁大學法律學院） \n與談人：\n陳言博 律師（益思科技法律事務所）\n凌怡華 博士（Work Better Innovations 執行長） \n報名資訊：\nhttps://forms.gle/2JCdqmYnNz8B9iub6
URL:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/event/trade-policy-and-labor-rights-competition-and-convergence/
LOCATION:A402\, Assembly Building I\, Guangfu Campus\, NYCU
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://transit-asia.chss.nycu.edu.tw/cms/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/【活動海報】貿易政策與勞動權益的競與合_檢視檔-scaled.jpg
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