Thirty-four illegal Taiwanese workers held by Philippine immigration officials

菲律賓移民官員持有三十四名台灣非法勞工

77 foreign nationals held by Philippine Immigration for working illegally


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) -- Agents from the Philippine Bureau of Immigration and the National Police Counter-Intelligence Task Force arrested 34 Taiwan nationals and 43 other foreign nationals at a building in Makati City on Tuesday.

Seventy-seven foreign nationals were detained late Tuesday during an investigation into an internet gaming company where seven fugitive Chinese nationals were believed to be hiding. The police arrested four of the wanted Chinese nationals and 73 other foreign workers who failed to provide proof of legal work permits and refused to divulge their true identities, when asked their names on suspicion of working illegally.

All 77 foreign detainees were expected to be transferred to an immigration detention center in suburban Manila late Wednesday.

The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in the Philippines said it had contacted the Filipino Bureau of Immigration to find out more about the situation and was considering how it could best assist the 34 Taiwanese detainees.