Premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) yesterday urged farmers to look before they leap when it comes to China's offer to import 13 types of fruit through a tax-free mechanism.
"We have to think about it. Why are they doing this to us? Why do they have to be so nice to us?" he said. "In addition, exporting our fruit to China will never be the permanent solution for our farmers worried about the slowing sales of their products."
Hsieh made the remarks during a speech at a seminar for agricultural exporters and researchers yesterday morning. He said he would remind farmers to think about why the Chinese government would be so friendly to Taiwan.
"The main reason is -- we have our own authorization but they [the Chinese government] want to authorize us," Hsieh said.
He said that agriculture in China is far less advanced than it is in this country. Logically, the Chinese government should be encouraging its own production and trying to export its own fruit instead of welcoming imports, he said.
"The Chinese government avoids government-to-government negotiations. Under these circumstances, any form of investment would be dangerous because there would not be any protection by the government if something goes wrong," he said. "We should think about that before we make a move."
Hsieh used the recent China visits by leading politicians as examples to support his statement.
"Chinese Nationalist Party [KMT] Chairman Lien Chan (連戰), People First Party Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) and New Party Chairman Yok Mu-ming (郁慕明) all received huge welcomes when they visited Beijing. Why didn't the governors of Sichuan or Jiangxi receive the same when they arrived in Beijing?" Hsieh said. "That is because Taiwan is an independent country, which is an unacceptable fact to them [Beijing]."
China has offered to allow the duty-free import of 13 types of fruit, including pineapples, papayas, star fruit, mangoes, guavas and plums.
Hsieh said that the government's job is to take care of its people, including farmers. The government will help farmers promote and sell their products overseas.
However, since government-to-government protection does not exist between Taiwan and China, he would urge farmers to rethink the Chinese offer, even though its terms are quite tempting.
"Fruit cannot be storepiled because they begin to rot very quickly. If the Chinese government suddenly changes its policies and holds up the import of fruit, what will Taiwanese farmers be able to do when they do not have the government's protection?" he said. "Absolutely nothing."
"We must consider these potential risks," he said.
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