Former president Lee Teng-hui's (
The Taipei Office of the Interchange Association, Tokyo's de facto embassy in Taiwan, said they didn't receive any visa application from Lee yesterday, after the original application was withdrawn on Tuesday.
"As of now, we have not received any related application," said Toshio Matsumura, chief of the general affairs section of the association.
Chung Chen-hung (鍾振宏), an adviser at the Taiwan Research Institute who has worked closely with Lee and the Japanese foreign ministry with regard to Lee's planned visit, was tight-lipped when asked about the latest development.
"No comment," Chung told the Taipei Times yesterday afternoon, adding he would be unwilling to reveal any further information in the next few days. This was a U-turn for someone who had been quite accessible on Tuesday.
After consulting with Lee on Tuesday evening, the 73-year-old retired diplomat revealed that he would re-apply for a visa on Lee's behalf yesterday afternoon in order to restate the purpose of the visit. It's not clear why the original application was withdrawn.
A CNA report from Tokyo yesterday said that Tuesday's meeting involved an understanding with Japanese officials which stated that Tokyo might reconsider Lee's application if he applies for a tourist's visa.
When contacted by the Taipei Times, Chung refused to comment on the report.
Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hatsuhisa Takashima said Tuesday that the Japanese government might reconsider Lee's entry request if he reapplies for a visa for sightseeing or other private purposes.
A source in Tokyo told the Times that the prospects were good that the Japanese government would issue the visa.
"According to the Japanese official we contacted over the past day or two, the premier's office made a decision last Friday intending to issue Lee the visa," the source said under condition of anonymity.
"They see no reason why they should turn down his application since he previously received a visa," the source said.
Lee, a staunch pro-independence activist since he stepped down in 2000, visited Japan in April last year for medical treatment, prompting Beijing to cancel visits to Japan by senior officials.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Kong Quan (孔泉) said on Tuesday that Beijing opposed Lee visiting any of China's diplomatic allies -- for any reason
Lee originally planned to give a talk on "the Spirit of Japan" at Keio University on Nov. 24 after having been invited by a student club.
However, when consulted by the Japanese foreign ministry on Monday -- the day the original visa application was made -- the university said that the speech was not going ahead as scheduled. That triggered Chung's move on Tuesday to withdraw the application.
After the planned speech at Keio University was canceled, student organizers decided to arrange for Lee to give his talk in a downtown hotel in Tokyo, the source in Tokyo said.
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