Taiwan Labor Ministry Investigates Allegations of Migrant Worker Mobilization at KMT Rally

Scrutiny Intensifies After Claims of Foreign Worker Involvement in Political Protest

Taipei, April 27 – The Ministry of Labor (MOL) in Taiwan has announced an investigation, in collaboration with the National Immigration Agency (NIA), following claims that migrant workers were mobilized to attend a Saturday rally against the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

The rally, organized by the Kuomintang (KMT), Taiwan's main opposition party, took place on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei and protested ongoing recall campaigns targeting 34 KMT lawmakers.

In a series of counter-actions, KMT supporters have initiated recall campaigns themselves, with 15 DPP lawmakers recently facing potential recall votes after passing the second-stage threshold.

A video surfaced online from the rally, depicting foreign nationals participating. The video shows a woman interviewing a "protester" in Mandarin, inquiring why they joined the event. The participant, struggling to understand, later responded (translated into Vietnamese), stating, "An older man brought me here."

The individuals in question were part of a group wearing blue caps featuring the name and slogan of KMT lawmaker Cheng Cheng-chien (鄭正鈐), representing Hsinchu City.

Lin Chih-chieh (林志潔), an academic, shared the video and a photo on Nanda Road in Hsinchu City, crediting the photo to a private contributor who stated the group later boarded a tour bus heading north.

In response, Cheng's office denied mobilizing migrant workers. They stated that due to the rain on Saturday, his supporters requested hats from his staff at the rally, and the office did not conduct background checks at that time.

The office later confirmed that some participants were foreign-born spouses of Taiwanese citizens, also holding Taiwanese citizenship, and that others were children of Taiwanese citizens and their foreign spouses, claiming that no migrant workers were present.

The MOL, in its statement on Saturday night, said it would investigate the situation with the NIA and take action if any laws were violated. The Employment Service Act prohibits employers from "assigning the employed foreign worker to work outside the scope of the work permitted."

Violators of this law could face fines ranging from NT$30,000 (US$921.64) to NT$150,000, and have their authorization to hire foreign workers revoked.