From someone, to no-one, to a new-one: a subjective view of Taiwan’s immigration policies in the context of multiculturalism

Since the 2000s, the Taiwanese government has undertaken significant efforts to encourage social integration and the recognition of immigrants in the expectation that local communities would follow their lead. A number of scholars have, however, criticised Taiwan’s multicultural policies, claiming that these are based on an assimilationist model that is focused on educating migrant communities on local habits and heritage rather than on recognising the migrants' original cultures. In this paper, I argue that assessing migrants’ integration and encouraging their recognition in receiving societies should not only entail analyses of governmental policies and social responses to these; it is also important to consider the heterogeneity of identities and interests co-existing within immigrant communities, the possible changes in an individual’s status during the process of migration, and the migrants’ responses to the structural system that is shaping their lives.