TAIPEI, TAIWAN (February 13, 2026)–In response to the Taiwanese government releasing the text of the Taiwan-US Reciprocal Trade Agreement (ART), Sari Heidenreich, Greenpeace USA Senior Human Rights Advisor, Global Fisheries, said: “The trade deal contains promises of meaningful steps in their seafood sector that the Greenpeace global network has been demanding for years, including some commitments from Taiwan to improve labor conditions and environmental protections for its distant water fishing fleet, which is the second largest in the world. If properly implemented, these changes will help reduce the human trafficking and forced labor that have plagued Taiwan’s fishing industry for years. Taiwan must follow through on the commitments to allow fishers the right to unionize at the workplace level and to access wi-fi while at sea, both fundamental to ending isolation at sea.
“In order to really address the persistent issues of forced labor in seafood, the U.S. government has to take action also. This includes implementing an improved Seafood Import Monitoring Program–SIMP 2.0–that includes labor provisions and covers all species, in order to close loopholes that are currently being exploited.
“From an environmental perspective, this deal is worrying. The proposed purchase by Taiwan of $44.4 billion worth of U.S. LNG and crude oil over the next four years raises alarm bells.”
In the ART, Taiwan committed to addressing the issues of the two-tier labor system in Taiwan, which excludes migrant fishers on fishing vessels from basic labor protections and which the global Greenpeace network has been calling to be abolished for years.
Shay Kuo, Oceans Campaigner for Greenpeace East Asia, said: “This is a positive and meaningful step. But real progress requires structural reform. The two-tier system must be abolished for Taiwan to truly meet its international human rights commitments.”
Contact: Tanya Brooks, Greenpeace USA Senior Communications Specialist, [email protected]
Vela Andapita, Global Communications Coordinator, Beyond Seafood campaign, Greenpeace Southeast Asia, +62 817 5759 449 (UTC+8), [email protected]
Greenpeace USA (Greenpeace Inc.) is part of a global network of independent campaigning organizations that use peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future. Greenpeace USA is committed to transforming the country’s unjust social, environmental, and economic systems from the ground up to address the climate crisis, advance racial justice, and build an economy that puts people first. Learn more at www.greenpeace.org/usa.
