Ji Xiaofeng (紀曉峰), a Chinese dissident living in exile in Sweden, says Taiwanese intelligence agencies are trying to block Uighur and Tibetan independence activists from entering Taiwan ahead of two major sporting events.
Ji told the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) last month that on Aug. 23 he received a call from a Taiwanese military intelligence officer that he knew, inquiring about possible plans for demonstrations by activists from Xinjiang and Tibet during the World Games in Kaohsiung and the Deaflympics in Taipei.
Ji told the Liberty Times that the Taiwanese government intended to use the information to make a blacklist for rejecting visa applications.
When Ji asked the officer why he needed the information and why Taiwan would attempt to block Xinjiang and Tibetan activists, the officer replied that it was an order “from above,” Ji said.
Ji said he refused to give the officer any information and that he could not believe that intelligence agencies were trying to work with China to repress the Xinjiang and Tibetan independence movements, the report said.
Ji was quoted by the Liberty Times as saying that as long as the activists did not engage in violence, any Uighur or Tibetan demonstrations would make Taiwan more visible in the international community and that he was disappointed with how President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) government was handling the issue.
In response, National Security Bureau officials said the bureau had asked intelligence agencies to gather information about international terrorist groups, especially those that had caused problems at international sports events in the past, but stressed they were not targeting Tibetan or Uighur activists in particular.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) spokesman Henry Chen (陳銘政) was quoted as saying that it was “absolutely untrue” that MOFA would tighten visa controls to block Uighur and Tibetan activists from entering the country ahead of the World Games and Deaflympics.
Chen said that the handling of all visa applications would follow normal procedures.
The Ministry of National Defense also rebutted the accusation, saying that gathering intelligence on the activities of the Uighur and Tibetan independence movements was “not the business of the military intelligence bureau,” the Liberty Times reported.
Ministry spokesman Yu Sy-tue (虞思祖) declined to comment on the matter when contacted by the Taipei Times.
The Taipei Department of Health’s latest inspection of fresh fruit and vegetables sold in local markets revealed a 25 percent failure rate, with most contraventions involving excessive pesticide residues, while two durians were also found to contain heavy metal cadmium at levels exceeding safety limits. Health Food and Drug Division Director Lin Kuan-chen (林冠蓁) yesterday said the agency routinely conducts inspections of fresh produce sold at traditional markets, supermarkets, hypermarkets, retail outlets and restaurants, testing for pesticide residues and other harmful substances. In its most recent inspection, conducted in May, the department randomly collected 52 samples from various locations, with testing showing
The government should improve children’s outdoor spaces and accelerate carbon reduction programs, as the risk of heat-related injury due to high summer temperatures rises each year, Greenpeace told a news conference yesterday. Greenpeace examined summer temperatures in Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Hsinchu City, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung to determine the effects of high temperatures and climate change on children’s outdoor activities, citing data garnered by China Medical University, which defines a wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) of 29°C or higher as posing the risk of heat-related injury. According to the Central Weather Administration, WBGT, commonly referred to as the heat index, estimates
Taipei and other northern cities are to host air-raid drills from 1:30pm to 2pm tomorrow as part of urban resilience drills held alongside the Han Kuang exercises, Taiwan’s largest annual military exercises. Taipei, New Taipei City, Keelung, Taoyuan, Yilan County, Hsinchu City and Hsinchu County are to hold the annual Wanan air defense exercise tomorrow, following similar drills held in central and southern Taiwan yesterday and today respectively. The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) and Maokong Gondola are to run as usual, although stations and passenger parking lots would have an “entry only, no exit” policy once air raid sirens sound, Taipei
Taipei placed 14th in the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Best Student Cities 2026 list, its highest ever, according to results released yesterday. With an overall score of 89.1, the city climbed 12 places from the previous year, surpassing its previous best ranking of 17th in 2019. Taipei is “one of Asia’s leading higher-education hubs,” with strong employer activity scores and students “enjoying their experience of the city and often keen to stay after graduation,” a QS staff writer said. In addition to Taipei, Hsinchu (71st), Tainan (92nd), Taichung (113th) and Taoyuan (130th) also made QS’ list of the top 150 student cities. Hsinchu showed the
RSS