Southern Riot mix poetry and punk to create songs that rail against the exploitation and abuse of migrant workers.
Kaohsiung, Taiwan – Surrounded by his fellow band members, Rudi takes the stage in Taiwan’s southern port city of Kaohsiung. As he looks out over the crowd, his bandmates begin to play, whipping the audience into a frenzy of excitement.
“Silenced by threats, here we stand against this system of slavery,” Rudi sings, as the crowd forms a mosh pit, chanting along with him. Beside him, a banner strung between two microphones reads, “Migrant workers have the right to a voice”.
Originally from the town of Indramayu in West Java, Rudi struggled to find work in his home country. “It’s hard to find a job in Indonesia, almost impossible,” he told Al Jazeera. “I didn’t have any permanent job. I did everything I could.”
Rudi moved to Taiwan in 2015 to operate heavy machinery in a factory. Like many of the island’s 768,000-odd migrant workers, he was looking for employment and the chance to build a better life.
