Taiwan's Hidden Human Rights Problem & Cross-Strait Tensions - Kristina Kironska

Kristina Kironska joins The Interlocutor Podcast for a wide-ranging conversation about Taiwan, human rights, refugees, statelessness, cross-strait relations, Myanmar, and the complicated relationship between democracy and human rights.Taiwan is often celebrated as a beacon of democracy and human rights. But, as Kristina explains, its human-rights landscape also contains some surprising contradictions, including the fact that Taiwan does not have a national asylum law.We discuss how people can become stateless in Taiwan, including undocumented migrant workers and their children, as well as the unusual situation faced by stateless Tibetans and foreign spouses. Kristina also shares findings from her research into how Taiwanese people view refugees and the possibility of an asylum law.The conversation then turns to cross-strait relations and a large-scale survey in which “tension” was the dominant response when Taiwanese respondents were asked what first came to mind when thinking about Taiwan-China relations.Kristina also draws on her years researching and living in Myanmar to explain the country's ongoing civil war, the persecution of the Rohingya, the 2021 military coup, the fragmented resistance movement, and China's role in Myanmar.Finally, we discuss the emotional challenges of human-rights work and Kristina's advice for young people who want to make a difference.In this conversation:• Taiwan's surprising human-rights contradictions• Why Taiwan has no asylum law• How people can become stateless in Taiwan• Stateless Tibetans and foreign spouses• Taiwanese attitudes toward refugees• Cross-strait relations and the psychology of anxiety• The Rohingya and the genocide in Myanmar• Myanmar after the 2021 coup• China's interests and influence in Myanmar• The emotional toll of human-rights work• Advice for young people entering the fieldKristina Kironska is a researcher and human-rights advocate whose work focuses on Taiwan, Myanmar, refugees, statelessness, and human rights in Asia.If you enjoy long-form conversations about how people, places, and lived experience shape the way we see the world, consider subscribing to The Interlocutor Podcast.#Taiwan #HumanRights #TaiwanPolitics #Refugees #Statelessness #Myanmar #China #CrossStraitRelations #Rohingya #TheInterlocutorPodcastKeywords Taiwan, Taiwan human rights, Taiwan asylum law, Taiwan refugees, refugees in Taiwan, statelessness Taiwan, stateless people Taiwan, Taiwan politics, Taiwan China relations, cross strait relations, cross-strait tensions, Taiwan democracy, Taiwan human rights issues, human rights Taiwan, Kristina Kironska, Kristina Kironska Taiwan, Myanmar, Myanmar human rights, Myanmar civil war, Myanmar coup, Rohingya, Rohingya genocide, China Myanmar relations, China Myanmar, refugees, asylum law, stateless refugees, Tibetans in Taiwan, Taiwan foreign policy, democracy in Taiwan, human rights in Asia, human rights advocacy, Amnesty International, Asia politics, Taiwan podcast, Taiwan interview, Taiwan expert, The Interlocutor Podcast