Premier Simon Chang (張善政) yesterday promised to keep an open mind on a possible visa application from the Dalai Lama, saying the government would not reject his application on political grounds.
During a question-and-answer session at the Legislative Yuan, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chuang Ruei-hsiung (莊瑞雄) asked Chang what the attitude of President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration was toward allowing the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader to visit Taiwan.
“The Dalai Lama has visited Taiwan three times. As I understand, he has not applied for another visa. As long as he files an application, we will process his request accordingly,” Chang said.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
Approval of a visa application would hinge on the purpose of the proposed visit, the premier said, adding: “If the visit is beneficial to both sides, I do not see any reason why we should not let him come.”
“So, does that mean that the government would adopt an open attitude should the Tibetan spiritual leader submit a visa application?” Chuang said.
Chang said that by openness, he meant the government would accept a visa application and would refrain from impeding the Dalai Lama’s application using “bizarre political reasons of any kind.”
Earlier in the day he had said that the visa issue would be decided by consultations between the Mainland Affairs Council and other government agencies.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Apollo Chen (陳學聖) on Monday launched a petition urging Ma to issue a visa to the Dalai Lama so he could visit before Ma’s presidential term ends on May 20. He said that since the Dalai Lama is no longer the leader of the Tibetan government-in-exile, the administration has no reason not to let him visit.
Chen yesterday afternoon held a news conference in Taipei to reiterate his appeal.
Meanwhile, asked about the visa issue on the sidelines of the legislative session, Mainland Affairs Council Minister Andrew Hsia (夏立言) said that everything depended on the situation if and when the Dalai Lama submitted an application.
Asked if China would exert pressure on Taiwan over the issue, Hsia said: “I believe we all know about China’s stance on a visit by the Dalai Lama to Taiwan. We have our own procedures and everything will be processed accordingly.”
Andrew Lee (李憲章), the deputy director-general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Public Diplomacy Coordination Council, said that visa applicants must file documents detailing the purpose of their proposed trip before their applications can be evaluated.
“Since the Dalai Lama has not submitted an application yet, it is too early to say if such a request would be approved or not,” Lee said.
The Dalai Lama’s most recent visit to Taiwan began on Aug. 30, 2009, after he was invited by seven DPP mayors and county commissioners to hold religious services for victims of Typhoon Morakot, which had ravaged southern Taiwan earlier that month.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique