Taiwan maintained the highest Tier 1 ranking for the eighth consecutive year in the 2017 Trafficking in Persons Report released June 27 by the U.S. Department of State, an achievement that Premier Lin Chuan attributed to the hard work of Taiwan's government agencies.
Speaking at today's Cabinet meeting, the premier expressed his affirmation and appreciation to members of the Ministry of the Interior, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Labor (MOL), Ministry of Health and Welfare, and Council of Agriculture's Fisheries Agency.
Notwithstanding these results, Premier Lin urged agencies not to rest on their laurels, instead making further improvements as recommended by the report, including promoting new regulations governing foreign fishermen hired overseas, and stepping up labor protections for household caregivers and domestic workers. He asked the Fisheries Agency and the MOL to make sure these measures are properly enforced.
Regarding the report's observation many traffickers in Taiwan were sentenced to lenient penalties, the premier instructed Minister without Portfolio Lin Wan-I to coordinate with the Judicial Yuan to strengthen policies and actions under the framework of the Executive Yuan's human trafficking prevention board.
Human trafficking is a grave violation of basic human rights, and efforts to fight it require closer cooperation among all levels of government and nongovernmental organizations (NGO), the premier said. This year's Trafficking in Persons Report for the first time honored a Taiwanese NGO worker—Allison Lee, secretary general of the Yilan Migrant Fishermen Union. Lee is one of eight heroes around the world recognized by the U.S. State Department for their devotion to the fight against human trafficking.