■Asylum
Man to be denied entry
The government planned to reject a Chinese man's request for political asylum because he allegedly lied about his identity and had a forged passport, airport police said yesterday. The man arrived at CKS International Airport on Sunday on a Thai Airways flight from Seoul, police said. He was supposed to fly onto Bangkok, but instead of staying in the transit area for a stopover, the man showed up at immigration holding a banner requesting political asylum, police said. The man presented himself as a Chinese democracy activist named Xu Bo (徐波), but officials suspected that he was lying about his identity, said an airport policeman, who only gave his surname, Huang. "His passport was forged," Huang said. "As is the practice under the Warsaw Convention, we will put him on a flight back to the country he came from, South Korea," Huang said.
■ Politics
Chen to take nature walk
President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), along with executive officials and DPP lawmakers, is expected to take a hike on Yangminshan on Feb. 9, during the Lunar New Year vacation, to reinforce communication between the two sides, DPP lawmaker Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said yesterday. The activity was proposed by Premier Yu Shyi-kun at the party's Central Standing Committee, and Chen was said to endorse the initiative right away. The party's lawmakers have been complaining about poor communication with the Cabinet. They said they were often excluded from the party's decision-making process, which made it difficult for them to defend the government's polices.
■ Cross-strait ties
More flights, Chang says
KMT Legislator John Chang (章孝嚴) yesterday said that the success of the first charter flight to and from Shanghai could serve as a base for future direct flights. At a press conference held by Chang yesterday, he said that the charter flight service should not be limited to just the Lunar New Year holiday. He said the government should consider operating similar service during other holidays as well. KMT's Central Policy Coordinating Commission executive director Tzeng Yung-chuan (曾永權) told the press conference that the party's legislative caucus would push to amend the law governing cross-strait relations in the next legislative session in order to speed up the actualization of direct links and better serve the needs of China-based Taiwanese businessmen.
■ Immigration
Yu says Beijing out of order
Minister of the Interior Yu Cheng-hsien (余政憲) yesterday accused Beijing of ignoring the human rights of Chinese illegal immigrants being held in detention centers awaiting repatriation. During a visit to the Hsinchu Detention Center for Illegal Chinese Immigrants, Yu said Beijing has been dragging its feet on repatriation efforts. He said the repatriation paperwork of each detainee has been completed. The National Police Administration has said all three detention centers have been complaining of over-crowding, with the total number of illegal immigrants held exceeding 1,400. Yu said another 319 Chinese stowaways and illegal immigrants are being held at police stations around the nation while awaiting repatriation. Since April 1988, Beijing has been reluctant to take back illegal immigrants in accordance with the Kinmen Agreement reached between the two nation's Red Cross Societies in 1990. Under the agreement, Beijing is supposed to take delivery of illegal immigrants within 20 days of receiving a list of their names.
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