In unusually direct language, Taipei yesterday called on Beijing to pay more attention to Taiwan’s position on China’s controversial new passport, saying that China’s refusal to acknowledge its indignation had “hurt the feelings” of Taiwanese.
At the heart of the controversy is a new passport that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) began issuing in May, which features watermarks that include famous tourist attractions in Taiwan, such as Nantou’s Sun Moon Lake and Hualien’s Chingshui Cliffs; Arunachal Pradesh and Aksai Chin — areas whose sovereignty Beijing disputes with India; and 90 percent of the South China Sea.
Countries in the region, including Vietnam, India and the Philippines, reacted with indignation when the contents of the new passport were reported in news articles last month, making demarches to Beijing and issuing visas to Chinese visitors bearing imprints of their own rectified maps.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
Taiwan’s response to the inclusion of its territory in the passport was much more muted than that of the other countries, prompting accusations that President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) was not being vocal enough in asserting Taiwan’s independence and had failed to take seriously the implications of China’s action on the nation’s sovereign status.
Mainland Affairs Council Minister Wang Yu-chi (王郁琦) told the legislature yesterday that the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) had written to the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS) last week to explain Taiwan’s position on the matter.
The SEF and ARATS are semi-official bodies created to handle cross-strait affairs in the absence of official bilateral diplomatic relations.
In a reply received on Wednesday, ARATS dismissed Taiwan’s protest as “invalid,” adding that the design of the new passport had only become an issue after “pro-independence activists” had “made a fuss” over the matter, Wang said.
Wang said that Beijing’s response misrepresented the situation and he urged China to pay greater attention to Taiwan’s indignation over the passports.
“This incident is not a partisan concern, nor does it bother only a small number of people in Taiwan,” he said, dispelling the notion that only supporters of Taiwanese independence had been angered. “If the mainland authorities fail to realize this, the development of relations across the Taiwan Strait will be undermined.”
Beijing’s handling of the matter is “unacceptable” to Taiwan because it demonstrates that Beijing does not realize how serious an impact the incident has had on cross-strait ties, he said, adding that ties between Taiwan and China were defined as “special relations” rather than direct state-to-state relations, echoing remarks made by Ma the previous day.
Taiwan’s territory as outlined in the Republic of China (ROC) Constitution includes China, but at present its jurisdiction covers only Taiwan and the outlying islands of Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu, he said.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators last week demanded that SEF Chairman Lin Join-sane (林中森) step down after he said that Chinese officials had assured him that the new passport had not been designed with any “particular motive in mind,” except to be “trendy.”
In reaction to what it called an insufficiently assertive reaction to the matter on behalf of the government, the DPP began issuing passport stickers earlier this month featuring a map of Taiwan and its outlying islands over which a text reading: “Taiwan is my country” was superimposed.
Although the ROC does not recognize PRC passports and Chinese visitors who come to Taiwan are required to apply for a “compatriot pass” issued by the National Immigration Agency, the process nevertheless requires a passport.
FREEDOM OF NAVIGATION: The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan ‘in a wide range of areas’ as a part of a ‘strong unofficial relationship,’ a paper said The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.” Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations. Lammy replied “yes” to both questions. The
‘OF COURSE A COUNTRY’: The president outlined that Taiwan has all the necessary features of a nation, including citizens, land, government and sovereignty President William Lai (賴清德) discussed the meaning of “nation” during a speech in New Taipei City last night, emphasizing that Taiwan is a country as he condemned China’s misinterpretation of UN Resolution 2758. The speech was the first in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. It is the responsibility of Taiwanese citizens to stand united to defend their national sovereignty, democracy, liberty, way of life and the future of the next generation, Lai said. This is the most important legacy the people of this era could pass on to future generations, he said. Lai went on to discuss
AMENDMENT: Climate change is expected to increase the frequency of high-temperature days, affecting economic productivity and public health, experts said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) is considering amending the Meteorological Act (氣象法) to classify “high temperatures” as “hazardous weather,” providing a legal basis for work or school closures due to extreme heat. CWA Administrator Lu Kuo-chen (呂國臣) yesterday said the agency plans to submit the proposed amendments to the Executive Yuan for review in the fourth quarter this year. The CWA has been monitoring high-temperature trends for an extended period, and the agency contributes scientific data to the recently established High Temperature Response Alliance led by the Ministry of Environment, Lu said. The data include temperature, humidity, radiation intensity and ambient wind,
SECOND SPEECH: All political parties should work together to defend democracy, protect Taiwan and resist the CCP, despite their differences, the president said President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday discussed how pro-Taiwan and pro-Republic of China (ROC) groups can agree to maintain solidarity on the issue of protecting Taiwan and resisting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The talk, delivered last night at Taoyuan’s Hakka Youth Association, was the second in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. Citing Taiwanese democracy pioneer Chiang Wei-shui’s (蔣渭水) slogan that solidarity brings strength, Lai said it was a call for political parties to find consensus amid disagreements on behalf of bettering the nation. All political parties should work together to defend democracy, protect Taiwan and resist