The Philippine Congress yesterday began investigating a diplomatic row with Taiwan that erupted after Philippine authorities deported 14 Taiwanese fraud suspects to China early this month.
The Committee on Interparliamentary Relations and Diplomacy under the Philippines’ House of Representatives held its first hearing on the issue, focusing on whether Philippine laws and procedures were broken in deporting the Taiwanese to China along with 10 Chinese suspects on Feb. 2.
The probe was initiated by committee chairman Antonio Diaz, during a House plenary session two days earlier. The proposal was immediately passed.
According to House documents obtained by Central News Agency, Diaz slammed the Philippine Bureau of Immigration in a speech at the session for deporting the Taiwanese suspects to China in spite of a writ of habeas corpus issued by the country’s Court of Appeals on Jan. 31 that ordered the National Bureau of Investigation, the immigration bureau and the Department of Justice to bring the detainees to a Feb. 2 hearing.
The deportation sparked outrage and drew a strong protest from Taiwan, which initiated retaliatory measures, including recalling its envoy in Manila, tightening the screening of applications by Philippine citizens seeking to work in Taiwan and canceling visa-waiver privileges for some Philippine citizens.
On Feb. 8, Al Francis Bichara, chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, also proposed that the committee should get to the bottom of the incident and assess its possible impact on bilateral relations.
The House’s Secretariat is dealing with the proposal and investigations are scheduled to get under way next week, congressional sources said.
Meanwhile, Philippine Justice Secretary Leila de Lima yesterday said the row over the deported Taiwanese was an issue between Beijing and Taipei and did not involve Manila.
“Taiwan and Beijing are supposed to have this 2009 cross-straits [sic] agreement on crime fighting and mutual judicial assistance where they can really settle matters like this,” de Lima said in a TV interview.
“The Philippines is not a party to that. It is now up to Taiwan and Beijing to settle that matter [between] themselves,” she said, adding that the Philippines would not apologize over the incident.
In Taipei, the Ministry of Justice said that while it was unlikely Beijing would agree to immediately return the 14 Taiwanese suspects, it had asked Chinese authorities to do so, along with the legal evidence, after Chinese prosecutors have completed their investigation.
“So far, China has not responded to our request,” said Tsai Rei-tsong (蔡瑞宗), director of the ministry’s Department of Prosecutorial Affairs.
The ministry has requested that the 14 Taiwanese be tried in Taiwan using legal evidence provided by China, he said, adding that it had promised Beijing that prosecutors would seek heavy sentences.
Additional reporting by Rich Changting by Rich Chang
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary
‘WORLD WAR III’: Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said the aid would inflame tensions, but her amendment was rejected 421 votes against six The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal 2026, which includes US$500 million for Taiwan. The bill, which totals US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending, passed in a 221-209 vote. According to the bill, the funds for Taiwan would be administered by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency and would remain available through Sept. 30, 2027, for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative. The legislation authorizes the US Secretary of Defense, with the agreement of the US Secretary of State, to use the funds to assist Taiwan in procuring defense articles and services, and military training. Republican Representative
TAIWAN IS TAIWAN: US Representative Tom Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as ‘Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China’ The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year. The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC. The act includes US$831.5 billion in