Church, hiking group donate coats to New Taipei migrant fishers

New Taipei, Feb. 23 (CNA) Taipei's Saint Christopher's Church and a local hiking group came together Sunday to donate around 100 coats, blankets and pillows to migrant fishers in New Taipei.

Odilia, an Indonesian hiker, said that the organizations decided to work together because they share the goal of helping migrant fishers working in harsh weather conditions, particularly during winter.

Arie, an Indonesian priest at the church, drove 34 kilometers from the church to a fishing port in New Taipei's Wanli Fishing Port and later to Guihou Fishing Port to deliver the donations.

Arie, who works at the church's Migrant Workers Concern Desk, said he occasionally drives to fishing ports to drop off donations.

Migrant fishers have to send remittances back home to support their families, and Arie said the donations mean they will not have to spend their limited funds on jackets or blankets.

Arie highlighted migrant fishers' "very important" role in Taiwan's fishing industry and called on more Taiwanese people to participate in such charitable activities.

"Without them, Taiwan's fishing industry will collapse," Arie noted.

An Indonesian fisher working in Wanli going by the nickname "Buang" said the batch of donations was the first they received this winter and that none had been donated last year.

He said he hoped for more deliveries in the future.

Tsai Chia-wun (蔡嘉文), a hiking group member, said it was the second time she had participated in the charitable event.

She said she hoped similar initiatives would be held more often, so people could witness the living and working conditions of migrants working in Taiwan.

She said such exchanges are great opportunities to improve Taiwanese people's understanding of the workers and could in turn pressure the government to do more to improve their plight.