Description
Increasing geopolitical tensions have led to a renewed emphasis on the centrality of the state and major powers in shaping foreign policy discourse. Nowhere is this emphasis more pronounced than in the case of the US and China rivalry over the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan’s recent relations with medium and small-power countries in Southeast Asia have been analysed almost entirely through the lens of great power politics and state-centrism. This paper challenges this domination by looking at the agency of non-state actors, mainly migrant workers, in influencing and shaping the discourse of foreign policy and international relations in Southeast Asia amidst global power competition. To what extent do the large and expanding migrant worker communities from Southeast Asia in Taiwan challenge the monopoly of the state in shaping foreign policy discourse? Drawing from interviews, participant observation, and desk research, this paper argues that the increasing geopolitical and military tension has seen the well-being and security of migrant workers demand the attention of foreign policymakers in carrying out the state’s political agenda. This research sheds light on the roles and the power of labour migration in setting the tone and transforming foreign policy discourse, highlighting the need to take an inclusive approach towards non-state actors in international studies.
