The founder of Migrants' Park

The Migrants' Park Association Introduction

(1) Funder’s Introduction:

 

　　Editorial director and administrative director were once part of the company named “4-Ways News”, extending its business through the cooperation with the “Migrants’ Park”. Although some of the problems that forced the editorial director and administrative director, Mr. Lee, to leave the 4-Ways News, he shifts the company’s main focus to report on Southeast Asia’s migrant workers. As a director, Mr. Lee decided to reestablish a business of online media that continues to write and report the stories about Taiwan’s migrant workers. At the same time, his experiences working in the 4-Ways News have taught him some valuable lessons. Since the high cost of hardcopy newspapers and the convenience of an online media platform, Mr. Lee came up with a decision that uses the internet as a platform to spread their news to a wider audience. Now, the “Migrants’ park”, Mr. Lee’s new company, operates with a mobile office, hoping to move back and forth in a more convenient way in order to meet those migrant workers who live and work in different places in Taiwan.

 

 　　On the day of the opening ceremony, director Lee and his colleague of the “Migrants’ Park” introduce two promises to their supporters. First, “Migrants’ Park will provide first-hand and true information by interview and reporting. Second, the online platform will provide four different areas with Vietnamese, Indonesian, Thai, and Filipino, which enables those migrants workers to read the news using their first language.

 

　　Despite correcting, revising, and checking the reliability and credibility of the news article, director Lee also writes press releases, as well as the responsibility on public relations and promoting activities. In terms of press releases, including interviews, activities record, initiative, and reformation, it contains more works to finish. Sometimes, there are lectures and lessons to attend. Instead of doing all the jobs by himself, director Lee’s colleague will also assist him to interact and conduct interviews with those migrant workers.

 

(2) Origin :

 

　　” Migrants’ Park”, founded on May 31st, 2020, is a new online media that was established by the “4-Ways News “editorial director. By writing news and interviews,  ”Migrants’ Park” shows migrants’ true living conditions and treatments to the public. The name of ”Migrants’ Park '' symbolizes that this non-profit organization would become spiritual sustenance for migrants to take a rest and to relax.

 

　　Just before ”Migrants’ Park” was founded, “4-ways news’’ was the only press that published Southeast Asian language news and periodicals. It also provides opportunities for those migrants to express their thoughts. Once, millions of working migrants rely on that news and periodicals. After nine years of serialization,  “4-ways news’’ finally declared suspension of publication. A few months later, to last their belief of “ being migrants’ friends” and see the opportunities of well-developed tech, the original editorial group decided to found a new online media called “Migrants’ Park”, keep writing stories about those migrants and hoping to gain a fair future for them.

 

　　Unlike other Taiwanese ethnic groups such as the Hakkas and the Aborigines, “ Migrants’ Park” has an individual television platform. Therefore, this organization uses this opportunity to focus on the expression of migrants' thoughts. At the same moment, Taiwan’s freedom of speech allows “Migrants’ Park” to write freely and also make arguments about the government's legacy when appropriate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(3) Core Beliefs :

 

　　Hoping to last the belief of “ 4-ways new”, which is “standing with the minority”, “Migrants’ Park shows their perseverance. Not only write life stories about working migrants but “Migrants’ Park’’ also aiming to make Vietnamese, Thai, Indian and Filipino news and periodicals available. However, because of manpower and funds shortage,  “Migrants’ Park” wishes that online fundraising would make the organization last longer. Once, Taiwan mainstream news media misreporting happened, which made the stereotype toward Migrants stronger.

 

(4) Moltivation :

 

　　Despite there’s a large group of migrants living in Taiwan, very few media have ever pay close attention to those migrants or even listen to what they said. Those migrants often work in dangerous and dirty conditions and face any problems during their career, they even have to face employers’ harsh treatments and difficult jobs assigned. Lacking empathy, tolerance, Coupled with the influences of stereotypes, most of the media in Taiwan report these Southeast Asian immigrants negatively. In addition, there is no media that write and report migrants from their perspective or even introducing them to Taiwan society properly. During director Lee’s high school year, he viewed being a reporter as a foreseeable future. He believes that he could use one pen and one camera to change the world. Due to his enthusiasm,  he enrolled in the department of journalism at Chengchi  University and was exposed to the migrant’s issue while working in 4-Ways News. During that period, he had been aroused by a comic that told the story of a drug-addicted woman. The publisher is an old Filipino woman serving a sentence in Taoyuan prison, who had abandoned her child because of her husband ’s alcoholism. Originally, she was holding a Philippine midwife. However, she could not find a job when she came to Taiwan after leaving her family and was forced to work in a factory. Later on, she was arrested for wholesale drugs. Due to this, editorial director Lee realized that lack of caring and awareness will further lead to tons of tragedies, this further arouses his faith and enthusiasm toward the South-east Asian community.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(5) Service Target :

 

　　On the Migrants’ Park website, a small number of articles are written in Vietnamese, Indonesian, Thai, and Filipino so the Southeast Asian migrant workers are able to read these articles with their mother tongue. Furthermore, Chinese articles give society a chance to learn more about these Southeast Asian migrant workers by reading the stories on the website. These stories do not only make the public be more familiar with the Southeast Asian migrant workers, but they also alleviate the public prejudice against these foreign workers.

 

(6) Clientele :

 

　　Migrants’ Park report and write stories about the Southeast Asian migrant workers, vocalize for the workers. Migrants’ Park translates the articles in Vietnamese, Indonesian, Thai, and Filipino. Then, publish translated articles on the website, so migrant workers from Vietnam, Thailand, India, and the Philippines are able to read the articles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(7) Personnel :

 

　　Currently, there are only Editorial Director Li Yuexuan and Executive Director Peng Yiwen 2 full-time staff, others are part-time partners. Most of the translators are new inhabitants mothers and students, who often face economic disadvantages and great pressure.

 

(8) Individualism :

 

　　This group shares the stories of migrant workers through its own website in a blog way. The public can have a better understanding of the Southeast Asian migrant workers' lives, motivations, and dreams, which finally breaks the stereotypes of society. Moreover, the different languages of the articles allow migrant workers to communicate with each other. There are also many similar organizations in Taiwan that are working on similar goals, for example, ONE-FORTY, Taiwan International Workers’ Association (TIWA), Taoyuan Serve the People Association (SPA), and Yilan Migrant Fishermen Union (YMFU). At the same time, the editor-in-chief also contacts many migrant workers through social platforms and often contacts them directly on holidays or weekends. He often participates in their activities, which further understands foreign migrant workers, and deepens their understanding of Taiwanese people.

 

The MIgrants' Park workers interviewing the South-East Asian migrant workers