By Fion Khan / Staff writer, with CNA
Civic groups, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers and Control Yuan members today urged the government to enact a refugee law and make Taiwan’s asylum system more transparent, accountable and legally grounded, as Saturday marks World Refugee Day.
They also called on the National Immigration Agency (NIA) to clearly explain the review criteria, procedures and timelines for temporary alien registration certificate applications, regardless of whether the applications are approved or denied.
The Taiwan Association for Human Rights, Amnesty International Taiwan, DPP lawmakers Lin Yueh-chin (林月琴) and Wang Cheng-hsu (王正旭), and Control Yuan members Chi Hui-jung (紀惠容) and Kao Yung-cheng (高涌誠) made the appeal at a news conference at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
Their call followed a report submitted by Chi and Kao and passed by the Control Yuan on May 19 that said asylum cases are largely handled through administrative discretion due to the absence of a refugee law. A corrective measure was subsequently issued against the NIA.
The NIA had said that asylum seekers could be issued temporary alien registration certificates after their applications were reviewed, granting them rights including employment, health insurance coverage and access to education, Legislative Yuan negotiation records showed.
However, most applications had remained pending for more than two years without a decision, and no certificates had yet been issued, indicating a lack of clear review procedures and assessment standards, the report said.
The Ministry of the Interior has received more than 60 applications for temporary alien registration certificates, but has yet to issue a single one, Lin said, calling the situation “a system without exit.”
Many asylum seekers in Taiwan are forced to work illegally to survive, risking getting caught and being deported by immigration authorities, she said, adding that protecting the basic rights to survival and work is a fundamental human rights obligation of the government.
She called on the Ministry of Labor to issue uniform national guidelines regarding the right to work for asylum seekers, and urged the Executive Yuan to establish a cross-ministerial humanitarian residency and asylum system to integrate the operations of the interior, labor, health and education ministries.
To address the issue at its root, Taiwan needs a dedicated law that complies with international human rights standards, Wang said.
He pledged to engage with administrative agencies and civic groups in the legislature to push for the passage of a refugee law to make Taiwan’s asylum system open, transparent and institutionalized.
During the amendment of the Immigration Act (入出國及移民法) in 2023, the legislature passed an incidental resolution explicitly requiring the Ministry of the Interior to consult with competent authorities to provide basic living assistance for asylum seekers, Chi said.
Without such protections, the burden of supporting asylum seekers falls largely on non-governmental organizations, she said, urging the government to establish clear systems, regulations and review standards, and provide appropriate assistance for asylum applicants’ basic living expenses and medical needs.
The concluding observations of the fourth international review of the government’s National Report on the implementation of the two international human rights covenants earlier this year reiterated that Taiwan must establish a refugee and asylum system that meets international standards, Amnesty International Taiwan executive director Chiu E-ling (邱伊翎) said.
The “Two Covenants” referred to in the report are the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, both UN treaties that were incorporated into domestic law in Taiwan in 2009.
Taiwan has long portrayed itself as a nation founded on human rights, but that commitment would be difficult to sustain if it cannot provide institutional protections for personal safety and the right to seek asylum, Chiu said.
She urged the government to promptly draft and pass a refugee law, and establish a framework consistent with international norms.
Before legislation is passed, the government should review and improve existing mechanisms to ensure that asylum reviews are transparent, efficient and protective of basic rights, fully implementing the covenants’ recommendations to bring Taiwan’s human rights system into alignment with international standards, she said.