The nation should consider improving its commitment to the "movement of natural persons" and should further liberalize practices in the field, a Taiwan official said in Geneva yesterday.
The "movement of natural persons" -- one of the service trade areas that members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) have strenuously tried to improve since the trade boy came into force in January 1995 -- refers to the entry and temporary stay of persons for the purpose of providing a service. It does not relate to persons seeking citizenship, permanent employment or permanent residence in a country.
Lin Chia-cheng (
Both Lin and Yen agreed that Taiwan should improve its commitment on the movement of natural persons and should voluntarily open its doors wider to foreign lawyers, doctors, accountants and architects, as part of the efforts to further liberalize the country's service sector.
Lin said that although the nation currently allows foreign lawyers and accountants to carry out some of their practices in Taiwan, they are not allowed to prepare accounts or certificates for audit, or work on architecture projects.
Lin noted that if the nation were to further liberalize short-term work by foreign lawyers, doctors, accountants and architects, it could trigger opposition and resistance from local practitioners in the short term. But he said that in the long run the opening would benefit the country's overall development.
Yen echoed Lin's remarks, saying that while gradual liberalization in the country's industrial sector has helped rev up the country's economic development and has increased its trade benefits, the service sector -- which constitutes 67 percent of Taiwan's gross domestic product -- has not been sufficiently liberalized to reflect the WTO's free-trade spirit.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
Greenpeace yesterday said that it is to appeal a decision last month by the Taipei High Administrative Court to dismiss its 2021 lawsuit against the Ministry of Economic Affairs over “loose” regulations governing major corporate electricity consumers. The climate-related lawsuit — the first of its kind in Taiwan — sought to require the government to enforce higher green energy thresholds on major corporations to reduce emissions in light of climate change and an uptick in extreme weather. The suit, filed by Greenpeace East Asia, the Environmental Jurists Association and four individual plaintiffs, was dismissed on May 8 following four years of litigation. The
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