The Japanese media yesterday urged the government to issue a visa to former president Lee Tung-hui (
"They were still fiercely debating the issue," observed Lai I-chung (賴怡忠), special assistant to Lo Fu-chen (羅福全), representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan.
The confusion over the issue deepened yesterday as one Japanese official said the application had been submitted while the other denied that it had.
Seishiro Eto, senior vice foreign minister, said that Lee had applied for a visa, the Japanese language daily Asahi Shimbun reported.
Taiwan has urged Japan to grant the visa on the grounds that Lee needs to make the trip for medical reasons.
The Japanese government, however, has exerted caution in its responses to reports from Taiwan about the trip, which would likely anger Beijing.
"I have verified that an application was made ... Lee is an ordinary citizen and he applied for a visa for the sake of his health. The government should take this into account and make a decision cooly and in a timely manner," Eto was quoted by Asahi as saying.
The senior deputy foreign minister said Lee's representative had submitted the application and a medical certificate to Japan's de-facto Taipei embassy, the Interchange Association. But he said the documents were merely "entrusted" to the office and not accepted.
But a top government spokesman, Yasuo Fukuda, issued a statement contradictory to Eto's. "Neither application nor acceptance was made," Fukuda said, adding that the government's stance on not issuing Lee a visa remained unchanged.
And the Kyodo news agency reported that a foreign ministry official said Foreign Minister Yohei Kono indicated that Eto's statement did not reflect the position of the Japanese foreign ministry.
Hideo Tarumi, secretary-general of the Interchange Association in Taipei, told the Taipei Times on Wednesday that his office had received documents related to Lee's visa application.
Meanwhile, officials and analysts said rising support among Japanese media of Lee's visit could put pressure the Japanese government.
"The view held by the Japanese media is very advantageous to Lee," said Eugene Wang (王友仁), a political analyst at Chinese Culture University who was consulted by Lee's think tank, the Taiwan Research Institute, on the visit.
Asahi Shimbun as well as the Sankei, Yomiuri Shimbun and Mainichi newspapers have all published editorials in favor of issuing a visa to Lee.
Lee applied for the visa in order to receive medical treatment from a Japanese doctor for his heart condition. Lee, who is 78, underwent surgery in Taipei last November to clear a clogged artery which was attended by the same doctor.
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