Focus Taiwan0
Date: 06/11/20020
By: Lee Hsin-Yin, CNA staff reporter

One bright Sunday afternoon, Siti Johariyah and her friend hold hands and pose for pictures standing on the black-and-white checkered floor of Taipei Main Station hall, celebrating seeing each other for the first time in eight years.

"The hall is a good place to meet because it is comfortable and convenient," said the Indonesian caregiver in her 30s, who took the Taipei Metro from Luzhou, New Taipei. Her friend took the airport MRT from Taoyuan.

Visiting Taipei Main Station on Sunday afternoons has become a ritual for many migrant workers like Siti, who use the little free time they have to get togehter with people from home.

However, whether these gatherings will continue has become a political issue. Indeed, Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) recently found itself in a heated debate over whether the hall should permit mass gatherings after the COVID-19 pandemic eases.    [FULL  STORY]