The National Immigration Agency (NIA) yesterday promulgated a set of rules defining the scope of activities Chinese tourists can participate in, with four activities that are forbidden to them including participating in political rallies.
The NIA said Chinese visitors to Taiwan are prohibited from activity harmful to national security, such as participating in political activities or attending political talk shows and election campaigns. They are also forbidden from working for pay.
The rules were announced as an increasing number of Chinese tourists visit Taiwan — an average of 2,518 a day in the first nine months of this year — after the two sides of the Taiwan Strait signed an agreement to boost tourism last year and after direct flights were expanded in July.
The government has not allowed Chinese visitors to come to Taiwan without joining tour groups, though they are allowed free time aside from their tour itinerary.
MISSING VISITORS
Meanwhile, the NIA rebutted a local media report that said more than 25,000 Chinese nationals who entered Taiwan legally may be staying in the country illegally.
The real figure was less than 4,000, the NIA said in a press release late on Tuesday night in a rebuttal to a story published by the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) that said as many as 26,539 Chinese nationals had not left the country as scheduled and were listed as missing by the NIA.
The report said that, while many of these “missing” people had been found or left the country at a later date, such a large number of Chinese nationals living in the country illegally posed a threat to social stability and national security, as some were suspected of have committing crimes.
“[The number reported] is the total number of Chinese nationals who have been listed as ‘missing’ since the ban on cross-strait exchanges was lifted in 1988,” the NIA statement said.
Between 1988 and the end of October, more than 3.3 million Chinese nationals have entered Taiwan legally.
ADDING UP NUMBERS
“After deducting the number of missing Chinese nationals who have been removed from the list, which is 15,538, and the number of Chinese nationals who were listed as missing but have later been found to have left the country, the total number of missing Chinese nationals in the country stands at 3,901 at this time,” the statement said, adding that the agency was using all available measures to find out where these people are.
The NIA statement did not clarify how or why the 15,538 missing Chinese nationals were removed from the list.
Citing an unnamed Coast Guard Administration (CGA) official, the Liberty Times said the “small three links” — a means for Taiwanese and Chinese nationals to travel between outlying islands — has become a less expensive way for “people with intentions” from China to enter Taiwan.
The CGA official told the Liberty Times that in the past it would cost somewhere between 50,000 and 100,000 yuan (US$7,000 and US$14,000) per person to be smuggled into Taiwan.
Nowadays, many Chinese nationals who want to be smuggled into Taiwan do so under the guise of tourists, businessmen and spouses and even use forged documents, the official said.
After coming into Taiwan legally, they may work illegally or commit crimes, the report said, adding that it would be equally easy for Chinese nationals who committed crimes in Taiwan to escape via the three small links.
The NIA denied that such cases occur often.
“Among people from the mainland area who have come to Taiwan for tourism purposes via Kinmen, Matsu and Penghu, only nine people left their tour groups [and are missing],” the statement said, adding that the NIA implemented unspecified “special measures” to prevent and monitor such cases.
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