Category: Race | New Bloom Magazine

Freeway and High-Speed Rail Proposal by the KMT Stokes Controversy

Brian Hioe03/28/2024

A draft proposal by KMT caucus convener Fu Kun-chi has stoked controversy. Namely, the proposal would provide for the extension of high-speed rail around all of Taiwan, though this is attached to a proposal ostensibly focused primarily on an expressway connecting Hualien and Taitung and the extension of Freeway No. 6 to Hualien. The bill is currently backed by Legislative Yuan Vice President Johnny Chiang of the KMT...

EnglishEnvironmentalFeaturedIndigenousMarch 2024PoliticsRaceSocial Movements5 min read

Death of Infant Prompts Discussion on Children of Migrant Workers

Brian Hioe03/22/2024

An investigation is currently ongoing into the death of a six-month-old child whose parents were undocumented Indonesian migrant workers in Taiwan. The child is suspected to have died of the norovirus, with his sickness having been discovered after his placement at a shelter...

EnglishFeaturedLaborMarch 2024RaceSocial Movements5 min read

Ten Years Later, Tama Talum Cleared of Charges

Brian Hioe03/20/2024

After close to a decade, the Supreme Court moved to clear Indigenous Bunun hunter Tama Talum of a conviction on firearms possession and hunting of a protected Formosan Serow earlier this month...

EnglishIndigenousMarch 2024RaceSocial Movements6 min read

Recent Incidents Highlight Racism in Labor Policy for Migrant Workers

Brian Hioe03/05/2024

A number of recent incidents point to the challenges for migrant workers in Taiwan. In particular, apart from that racism influences policy-making when it comes to migrant workers, one notes how migrant workers are still denied the fundamental rights that Taiwanese workers enjoy...

EnglishLaborMarch 2024RaceSocial Movements5 min read

Wave of Racism Sweeps Taiwanese Social Media Over Plans to Allow for Indian Migrant Workers

Brian Hioe11/26/2023

Taiwanese social media has seen a wave of posts reacting to the possibility of opening up Taiwan to Indian workers. In particular, the posts are xenophobic in nature, framing Indians as rapists who would sexually assault Taiwanese women if they are allowed into Taiwan. This has led to online calls for a march against the planned opening up...

EnglishLaborNovember 2023RaceSocial Movements5 min read

Bahuan Community Demonstrates at NTU to Call for Return of Ancestors’ Remains

Brian Hioe11/20/2023

Members of the Bahuan community, who are Bunun Indigenous, demonstrated outside of National Taiwan University earlier this week. The demonstration led to some clashes with police, with a large number of police deployed for a relatively small number of protestors...

EnglishIndigenousNovember 2023RaceSocial Movements5 min read

Indonesian Representative Office Declares Ban on Non-Religious Activities for Migrant Workers After Deadly Brawl

Brian Hioe10/07/2023

The Indonesian Economic and Trade Office declared late last month that non-religious activities were banned for Indonesian migrant workers until December 12th...

EnglishLaborOctober 2023PoliticsRaceSocial Movements5 min read

Calls for Unionization, Improvements in Firefighter Safety, After Deadly Pingtung Blaze

Brian Hioe09/25/2023

There have been calls for improving safety measures for firefighters after a blaze killed four firefighters in Pingtung on Friday. Subsequently, the National Association for Firefighters’ Rights demonstrated on Ketagalan Boulevard on Saturday with a banner listing the names of the 39 firefighters who were killed in the line of duty in the past decade. The incident points to the need for a number of fundamental safety reforms...

EnglishEnvironmentalLaborRaceSeptember 2023Social Movements6 min read

Southern Riot: Indonesian Migrant Workers Use Punk Music to Claim Improvements in Taiwan

Ralf Ruckus08/16/2023

The story of Southern Riot begins shortly before the migrant worker rally in front of the Taiwanese labor ministry in Taipei on January 16, 2022. Support groups helped to organize this rally for demands such as the right of Southeast Asian migrants in Taiwan to freely change their employer...

August 2023EnglishLaborRaceSocial MovementsYouth Movements11 min read

Death of Vietnamese Intern in Factory in May Should Raise Questions

Brian Hioe06/19/2023

The death of a twenty-year-old Vietnamese intern in a factory in New Taipei in May should raise questions, particularly in light of the pattern in past years of students from mostly Southeast Asian and African countries being forced to work in factories as part of what are billed as “work study” programs or “internships"...

EnglishJune 2023LaborRaceSocial MovementsYouth Movements5 min read

Arts/Culture

Calling For a Return to Sinocentrism in the Name of Opposing It: Responding to ‘Reconsidering Sinophone Studies’

Re/writing COVID-19 in China: Solidarity as Metonym for Historical Truth?

How Taipei Became the Home of Live Comedy During the Pandemic

International

TSMC’s Development of Arizona Semiconductor Plant Could Have Implications for Taiwan’s Security

After Nine Years, Second Ma-Xi Meeting Occurs in Beijing

DPP Aims to Strengthen Laws Regarding Treason, Leaks

Interviews

“Trying to Gain More Autonomy in Our Narrative”: An Interview with René Hà on Stamped

Reflecting on an Ongoing Genocide: A Conversation with the Interviewees of All Static & Noise

Interview: David Novack and Janice Engelhart on All Static & Noise

Politics

TSMC’s Development of Arizona Semiconductor Plant Could Have Implications for Taiwan’s Security

KMT Leans Into Calls for Capital Punishment Against Child Abusers

Social Movements

Race

TSMC’s Development of Arizona Semiconductor Plant Could Have Implications for Taiwan’s Security

Four Decades of Strife and Resistance: A Deep Dive Into What’s Happening in West Papua

Interview: Kawtorpai Church

KMT Leans Into Calls for Capital Punishment Against Child Abusers

TSMC’s Development of Arizona Semiconductor Plant Could Have Implications for Taiwan’s Security

KMT Leans Into Calls for Capital Punishment Against Child Abusers

Han Kuo-yu Becomes Chair of the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy