Migrant workers create a hundred billion in output value, brokerage fees reach 20 billion, revealing the hearts of migrant workers

"In the high mountains of Taiwan, I hate those brokers. The journey of life is hard and bitter
I found my way to the treasure island of Taiwan to make money. Please, for our plight
stop charging excessive brokerage fees. Oh, does heaven know
how hard the workers toil? Why must contracts be broken?
Why must we run away and wander?
No one wants to wander everywhere
Working hard, looking at the salary, feeling low. Please do not ask why
Why have I not come down the mountain yet? Why have I not gone home yet? Because there are still debts to repay
I owe my neighbors and I owe the bank. I owe relatives and I owe family.........."

Not long ago, a well-known factory in Kaohsiung was exposed for illegally employing foreign workers and even confining foreign laborers inside and outside the factory for as long as fourteen years. The appalling conduct left people shocked and brought the issue of illegal migrant worker employment back to the surface. But why are migrant workers always the victims in the process of changing workplaces? Director Nguyen Kim Hong, through the film "Goodbye, Lovely Stranger," tries to let these people, regarded as strangers, face the camera and tell the public the answer themselves.

Although the basic wage was raised last year, and the Ministry of Labor also stressed that "local workers and foreign workers are not delinked," meaning that all workers covered by the Labor Standards Act should have their basic wage handled accordingly and monthly wages should be 21009 yuan, "but working in a factory on the flat land, I only earn 8,000 to 9,000 yuan a month." A Fu, a Vietnamese migrant worker carrying a loan of 230,000 yuan, described this reality.

Under Vietnamese regulations, the brokerage fee for migrant workers coming to Taiwan is 4000 US dollars (about 120,000 yuan), but after all kinds of additional charges are added, many migrant workers arrive in Taiwan carrying debts of 7000 to 9000 US dollars (about 210,000 to 270,000 yuan), and must spend double the time repaying them. If they also have to shoulder the family economy of five or six people, what choice will migrant workers make? "Run away, otherwise there is no way to send money home. Working in the factory, you also get beaten by the supervisor," said A Fu bluntly while peeling garlic on the mountainside.

Annual brokerage fees reach more than 20 billion; dead and disabled migrant workers exceed 5700

In order to confront the problem of excessive brokerage fees, Vietnamese migrant workers have already protested in Taiwan many times. Cai Chonglong, producer of "Goodbye, Lovely Stranger," also pointed out that the number of foreign migrant workers in Taiwan has already surpassed 600,000, creating about 100 billion yuan in output value each year, but brokerage fees alone reach more than 20 billion yuan. Registered migrant workers who have died or become disabled exceed 5700. Because this group has no voting rights, it has long been ignored. Therefore, through the film, he hopes to let everyone see the reality migrant workers face.

Director Nguyen Kim Hong, also of Vietnamese nationality, pointed out that illegal migrant workers mostly hide in factories and rural villages on Taiwan's flat land, or in vegetable fields and tea gardens in the high mountains. They make a great contribution to Taiwanese society, which lacks grassroots labor, but many people do not understand why they become illegal foreign workers, and even misunderstand them. Yet as a new immigrant herself, she can understand their helplessness. "If they could work properly and earn money, who would be willing to leave home and hide everywhere to work and get by?"

Nguyen Kim Hong also said that through the filming of this documentary, she hopes more friends can get to know this group of unsung heroes who drive Taiwan's economic development behind the scenes. Although they are not Taiwanese, they like the free and prosperous environment here, and they are also deeply moved by the care and support most Taiwanese people give them. Most importantly, she also hopes Taiwanese people will understand that "they are not different from you. They are only weaker than you in economic conditions and real circumstances. Please do not treat them as hateful strangers. Even if you cannot help them, please do not oppress them."

A song sung by migrant worker A Cheng in his mother tongue:

My hometown is beside the sea; my first cry at birth was by the sea
Every minute and every second I long for the day I return; at tomorrow's dawn we go our separate ways
I left the town and all the mountains and waters of my hometown. What is left behind? Even the wine cup is dry.

Faced with the above plight of migrant workers, Cai Chonglong and Nguyen Kim Hong both hope that this huge transnational structure of complicity can be improved as soon as possible, ending the tragic song of illegal migrant worker employment.

"Goodbye, Lovely Stranger" screening schedule

3/18 Taipei tifa office session
Saturday 13:00 · Organizer: "Goodbye, Lovely Stranger" - Migrant Worker Documentary Tour
1F, No. 33, Lane 32, Guangming Road, Sanchong District, New Taipei City

3/18 Fuzhong 15 session
Saturday 16:20 · Organizer: "Goodbye, Lovely Stranger" - Migrant Worker Documentary Tour
Fuzhong 15 (Fuzhong 15)

3/26 Taiwan Vietnam Zhide Buddhist Culture Exchange Association
Sunday 13:00 · Organizer: "Goodbye, Lovely Stranger" - Migrant Worker Documentary Tour
1F, No. 1, Lane 22, Jinde North Road, East District, Taichung City