The Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission (MTAC) yesterday denied reports that a recently revised policy would require Tibetan refugees to have their Taiwanese visas approved by the commission before they can cross the border into Taiwan.
Several reports have said that a recently revised policy would require Tibetan exiles to obtain approval for their Taiwanese visas from the commission before they can legally enter Taiwan.
MTAC Chairman Kao Su-po (高思博) yesterday denied the reports while answering questions at the legislature’s Internal Administration Committee, saying visa approval was not among the commission’s responsibilities.
“If Buddhist groups from Tibet want to extend their stay in Taiwan, then the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Bureau of Consular Affairs would seek our opinion,” he said. “But visa approval is the responsibility of the National Immigration Agency and the Bureau of Consular Affairs.”
Kao also said the Dalai Lama was welcome to visit again as long as he did not come at a sensitive time. However, because the matter involves national security, the National Security Council would have to be consulted before the Tibetan spiritual leader can be invited, he said.
In related news, Kao declined to address rumors that he could become the next minister of justice.
After minister of justice Wang Ching-feng (王清峰) stepped down last week amid criticism over her stance on capital punishment, rumors have been circulating as to who will take her place as the next justice minister.
Kao told legislators he had not heard such “ridiculous” news and that he had not been asked by any official about his willingness to assume the position.
He also refused to answer Democratic Progressive Party Legislator William Lai’s (賴清德) request to state his position on capital punishment and the execution of prisoners on death row.
Taiwan would benefit from more integrated military strategies and deployments if the US and its allies treat the East China Sea, the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea as a “single theater of operations,” a Taiwanese military expert said yesterday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said he made the assessment after two Japanese military experts warned of emerging threats from China based on a drill conducted this month by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theater Command. Japan Institute for National Fundamentals researcher Maki Nakagawa said the drill differed from the
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
A rally held by opposition parties yesterday demonstrates that Taiwan is a democratic country, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that if opposition parties really want to fight dictatorship, they should fight it on Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) held a protest with the theme “against green communists and dictatorship,” and was joined by the Taiwan People’s Party. Lai said the opposition parties are against what they called the “green communists,” but do not fight against the “Chinese communists,” adding that if they really want to fight dictatorship, they should go to the right place and face
A fugitive in a suspected cosmetic surgery fraud case today returned to Taiwan from Canada, after being wanted for six years. Internet celebrity Su Chen-tuan (蘇陳端), known as Lady Nai Nai (貴婦奈奈), and her former boyfriend, plastic surgeon Paul Huang (黃博健), allegedly defrauded clients and friends of about NT$1 billion (US$30.66 million). Su was put on a wanted list in 2019 when she lived in Toronto, Canada, after failing to respond to subpoenas and arrest warrants from the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. Su arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport at 5am today on an EVA Air flight accompanied by a
RSS