Immigrant teacher and politician promotes welfare of migrants in Taiwan

Immigrant teacher and politician promotes welfare of migrants in Taiwan

2023-06-26

Today we meet a teacher and politician who is passionate about the welfare of Southeast Asian immigrants in Taiwan. Vietnam-born Fan Mei-jung has lived in Taiwan for 23 years. She teaches Southeast Asian languages and cultures at Minth University of Science and Technology in Hsinchu County. She also runs a support group for female immigrants from Vietnam, helping younger women to find their own way in a new country. And as if that wasn’t enough, she’s one of the founding members of the Happy People Party, a ground-breaking political party founded by immigrants. Its raison d’etre is the wellbeing of Taiwan’s large migrant population. We went to Hsinchu to meet Fan and hear what makes her tick.

Every Monday, Fan Mei-jung teaches Southeast Asian languages on the campus of Minth University of Science and Technology. Today she’s brought along bamboo hats and is encouraging them to draw images of Vietnam on them.

Fan Mei-jung
Vietnamese immigrant and teacher
We come here with the status of friends, to share with them. It gives me quite a sense of accomplishment.

As a Vietnamese immigrant, Fan is well qualified to teach many different aspects of Vietnamese culture. She gives out spring roll wrappers recently brought home from a trip to Vietnam’s Tay Ninh Province.

Fan Mei-jung
Vietnamese immigrant and teacher
I’ve brought back some local snacks, so everyone can try them.

Hsu Chia-chen
Student
It’s crunchy, and has a distinctive Vietnamese flavor.

Tseng Hsin-chao
Minth University of Science and Technology dean
College students are often tapping on their phones in class nowadays. But as you can see, they don’t do that in Ms. Fan’s class. They’re fascinated.

Fan has impressive capacities in many different areas. When she first came to Taiwan more than 20 years ago, she experienced discrimination in the workplace, partly because of the language barrier. But she didn’t get bitter. Instead, she doubled down on her efforts to learn Chinese, finding that positive thinking was her best friend in her challenging circumstances.

Fan Mei-jung
Vietnamese immigrant and teacher
Wherever we are carving out a life, we always need to understand the language. When we can do that, then we can protect ourselves, so that we can live better, and help others, and give back to society.

Fan founded a club for new female immigrants from Vietnam. It provides a place where women can ask for advice, and a safe place they can rely on. And she’s also the vice chair of the newly established Happy People Party, which exists to promote the participation of immigrants in all areas of life.

But Fan says the most enjoyable part of her work is teaching. The interaction with students brings immense satisfaction, as she watches them develop more and more interest and delight in Southeast Asian cultures.

This story was provided by the program "We Are Family"
Funded by New Immigrant Development Fund

越南新住民范美蓉輕鬆教越南語

2023-06-26

來台23年的越南新住民范美蓉，來台初期也在工作上被歧視，不過她沒有怨天尤人，而是更積極的學習語言，增加中文能力。擁有碩士學歷的她，目前在大學教授東南亞語言，做中學的上課方式，讓越南語越學越有趣！

每個禮拜一，范美蓉老師在大學校園裡上東南亞語言課程。這天，老師帶了編織竹籃，讓同學們畫出心目中的越南意象。

[[越南新住民范美蓉]]
“我們就是以朋友的身份，來這邊跟他們分享，覺得滿有成就感的。”

來自越南的范美蓉老師，教學生越南當地文化，還有剛從西寧省帶回來的春捲皮，要加深同學們的印象。

[[越南新住民范美蓉]]
“我就是帶他們當地的零嘴回來，今天請各位同學一起來品嚐看看。”

[[上課同學徐嘉辰]]
“有嚼勁的，滿有越南特色味道。”

[[敏實科大校長曾信超]]
“現在大學生時常上課滑手機，你會發現，范老師的課就不會滑手機，興致高昂。”

范美蓉總是透過不同方式，在提升自己的能量。她回憶，20多年前來到台灣，因為語言隔閡，工作上被不平等對待，她沒有怨天尤人，反而更用心學好中文，正向思考是在逆境裡最好的應對模式。

[[越南新住民范美蓉]]
“在哪裡生存的，我們都是要懂得語言，當我們懂得語言，我們可以保護自己，可以為了我們生活得比較好，也可以幫助別人，回饋社會。”

為了協助新住民姊妹在台生活，范美蓉成立社團，姊妹們可以諮詢、有依靠，為了擴大新住民在社會各個領域的參與度，台灣新住民黨應運而生，她成為副主席。

范美蓉覺得最享受的，還是在課堂上跟孩子們的互動，那種越學越有趣、越學越不難的分享喜悅。

以上內容由《我們一家人》節目提供內政部移民署監製

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The JUMP 20 drone has an operational range of roughly 185 kilometers. It can perform continuous monitoring for more than 14 hours, and has a top flight speed of 92 kilometers an hour. Taiwan will become the third country to own the JUMP 20, after the U.S. and Ukraine.

Voice of Su Tzu-yun
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This is a testament to the political trust and security partnership between Taiwan and the U.S. The Jump 20’s principal purpose is battlefield reconnaissance. Through its visible light and infrared systems, it can effectively monitor battlefield environments day and night. Coast Guard missions are both military and police-like in nature. Besides adding a drone unit, Taiwan can also consider adding fixed-wing aircraft and an exclusive helicopter unit for the Coast Guard, which can be used to counter the CCP’s gray zone threat.

U.S. support for Taiwan also came recently from Congress. The House and Senate have passed the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act, which calls for expediting arms sales to Taiwan, expanding military training, and establishing a U.S.-Taiwan joint planning team. Mike Gallagher, chairman of the Select Committee on China, said that the danger of a Taiwan Strait conflict was at its peak. To contain Xi Jinping and the devastating consequences of war, the U.S. must work across party lines to counter China. Hard power must be used to stop Xi before it’s too late, and the 2024 defense bill is a crucial step in that direction, he said.

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We’re happy to see this kind of development as China’s militarization becomes increasingly rampant. We need more cooperation with allies including the U.S. Only then can we let the CCP know not to overstep in the Taiwan Strait.

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Taiwan plans to expand airport screening exemption to carry-on luggage

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With COVID restrictions eased, passenger volume is recovering fast at Taoyuan International Airport. The transport ministry plans to expand its four-year-old one-stop security program, by exempting carry-on luggage from security checks.

Wang Kwo-tsai
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At present, most of the passengers we see are traveling from North America to Taiwan’s Taoyuan International Airport, then transiting to flights bound for Southeast Asia or northeast Asia. In the past, they had to go through another security check upon arriving in Taiwan. After the program is expanded, if they complete a security check in the U.S., they will not need to undergo a second check when transiting in Taiwan.

This one-stop security program applies only to travelers flying in from the U.S., Canada, and New Zealand. Currently, such travelers who transit in Taoyuan don’t need to take their checked baggage through additional security screening. Four years after the program’s inception, the plan is to add carry-on luggage and passengers themselves to the exemption list. This could save transiting passengers up to one hour of wait time.

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This can help increase the willingness of international passengers to transit in Taipei. With visa-free entry offered for 24-hour transits, passengers can have short excursions in Taiwan.

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From January to April this year, more than 1.6 million tourists visited Taiwan. Official estimates suggest that 6 million might visit over the whole of 2023. But the face of tourism is changing, and businesses are offering more and more diverse services for travelers. Post-pandemic travelers are more concerned with making genuine contact with the unique soul of Taiwan. From making their own Taiwanese food to a cycling tour of the island, activities that engage with local culture are booming.

Korean cheerleader Lee Da-hye and American basketball star Dwight Howard are both susceptible to the charms of Taiwan’s night markets.

Korean actor Kim Seon-ho also paid a visit to a famous xiaolongbao restaurant. Taiwan’s cuisine is a big highlight of almost every traveler’s visit. But many tourists are done with just enjoying the food. They want to try making it too.

Overseas tourists don aprons and receive instructions, before getting down to make boba balls for tea. Next up they grab spatulas and fry up some pickles for a guabao bun.

Tourist
I’ve had bao before, but they’re like the more round kind. I’ve never had this kind before.

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When foreigners come to Taiwan, there’s a class where they can try making Taiwanese food for themselves. Our teachers share lots of Taiwanese stories, and history with them, so they can understand the richness of Taiwan’s culinary culture. Everyone says their favorite parts are making beef noodles, xiaolongbao, guabao, and braised pork rice.

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Korean streamer Jinny made a walking tour of the country. Travel agents are also offering cycling tours of the island. Travelers can make a slow exploration of Taiwan’s country and culture on two wheels.

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Most foreigners who come to cycle in Taiwan go to Hualien and Taitung, or Wuling. We also arrange deep cultural experiences in Taipei, which includes getting to know architecture and cuisine.

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Wang Yeuh-bin
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On July 1, we will launch our first phase of inspections. The main focus of our inspections will be large-scale operators. Large-scale operators refer to e-commerce operators with capital of NT$150 million or at least 500 stores.

Under the new policy, online retailers won’t be allowed to use polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, in their packaging. If they choose to use a different plastic, that plastic must contain more than 25% recycled materials. If they choose to use paper, at least 90% of it must be recycled paper.

Wang Yeuh-bin
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If an operator does not establish a self-management mechanism, we will target that operator for random inspections. Violators will be fined between NT$30,000 and NT$150,000.

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When you need a dental issue fixed, you’re meant to ring the clinic and book an appointment. Booking in advance is a standard procedure these days, as this member of the public explains.

Member of public
You know, if you have a real toothache, it can be quite inconvenient.

Some people wonder why normal medical clinics let you simply rock up, take a number, and wait your turn, while dental clinics want you to pre-book an appointment. It seems the two systems are dramatically different. Why?

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Dental treatment is usually one very small-scale operation. A complex treatment might take one or two hours. But the majority of treatments take 20 to 30 minutes.

More and more clinics are adopting the procedure of first talking to the patient to find out what’s wrong, and then arranging an appointment so they hopefully don’t have to wait too long in the waiting room, or impact other patients’ rights. But if you have a toothache right now, do you still need to book in advance? Well, not necessarily. In genuinely exceptional circumstances, you may be allowed to skip the queue.

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Usually that’s when the decay has reached the dental nerve, and the face is starting to swell. When you have cellulitis or something like that, then it’s definitely reached the point of a dental emergency.

Treating an acute toothache cannot be delayed. Alongside normal dental clinics, hospital ERs can also provide help in such cases.

Huang Yi-hao
Dental clinic director
When there’s really, absolutely, no other solution, you can go to a hospital emergency room. Yeah. The dentists have shifts – I used to be a hospital dentist.

Wen Ssu-yung
Taipei Dental Association
When you have a toothache, sometimes you really can take painkillers first. I think that dentists in every clinic are willing to treat a patient who is willing to wait in the waiting room.

Dentists say that the main difficulty is the large number of regular hygiene treatments they have booked most days. If you want to avoid getting the kind of toothache that requires emergency treatment and impacts other patients, by far the best policy is to discover any dental issues early, and get them treated as soon as possible.

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Miaoli man dedicates his life to restoring wild lilies after ecosystem degradation

Taiwan’s natural beauty is famous all around the world. In recent years, more and more ordinary people have got inspired to restore Taiwan’s ecosystems after degradation. Today we meet Wang Feng-hua, a local of Miaoli’s Sanyi Township. He’s passionate about the Wild Lily, a native blossom also known as the Hong Kong Lily. The beautiful white flower suffered in recent decades, as farming chemicals poisoned the countryside. But Wang has devoted himself to planting lilies over many years, supporting the local ecosystem to heal itself. Let’s see how his work turned out.

Wang Feng-hua walks us down a path he has known for decades. He grew up here in Miaoli’s Sanyi Township, leaving briefly for school before coming back home to Guandao Shan. But after his time away, he was shocked to find that local farmers’ use of herbicides was having a devastating impact on the wild lilies that used to carpet the paths here.

Wang Feng-hua
Wild lily gardener
They’re mowing the grass year after year, and some of the plants on the mountain have just disappeared.

Inspired to bring back to life the lush mountain of his childhood, Wang threw himself into restoring the wild lily, becoming a staunch “flower defender.”

Wang Feng-hua
Wild lily gardener
It’s just spending a little time on my own patch of land, and tidying it up a bit.

He doesn’t sell the lilies or make any money from them – instead he pays from his own pocket to plant them. It took a while to get his wife onboard with the project!

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I said, “Are you crazy?! Everyone’s trying to earn money. Why are you doing something with no value, no income source?”

There were just 30 lily plants here, at the worst moment. But that’s all changed. One year Wang planted 10,000 lilies on the mountain. Another year, wild boar feasted on the flowers, causing havoc. But Wang is not to be dissuaded.

Wang Feng-hua
Wild lily gardener
They can only sprout their new stalks when you increase the water levels. Actually, it’s obvious at a glance that there are plenty the boar haven’t eaten right here.

And the project has blossomed. The area which Wang cares for has seen the arrival of a small insect, the tea jassid. It’s a good indicator of a healthy ecosystem, unspoiled by herbicides. After all these years, Wang can say with confidence it was time well spent.

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