The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday questioned if there were political considerations behind the Mainland Affairs Council’s (MAC) delay in releasing its annual report on Hong Kong, which is normally released before the anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover to China on July 1.
DPP spokesman Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) yesterday urged MAC Chairwoman Lai Shin-yuan (賴幸媛) to release the annual report right away, saying she would otherwise be committing a serious mistake. Tsai questioned if the delay was caused by political considerations.
For the past 10 years, the MAC has released the annual report before July 1, and made negative remarks about the “one country, two systems” policy in Hong Kong.
After Hong Kong signed a Closer Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with China, the MAC expressed worries in its reports that the agreement may make Hong Kong too dependent on China, widen the gap between rich and poor and harm Hong Kong’s autonomy.
Sources said that the delay occurred because MAC officials are still trying to figure out how to redefine the situation after Taiwan inked the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) with China on Tuesday.
The MAC insists that the ECFA is different from the CEPA, but both serve to enhance trade and economic relations with China. Making too many comments on the CEPA may turn ECFA into a target of criticism, the sources said.
Critics alleged the MAC may be reluctant to criticize Hong Kong after Taiwan and Hong Kong strengthened official ties; on the other hand, the MAC may not be able to explain itself if the contents of this year’s report are too different from previous reports.
The DPP yesterday questioned whether there are hidden issues and urged the MAC to clarify.
Asked for comment, MAC Deputy Chairman Liu Te-shun (劉德勳) said he would have to look into the situation before responding.
On the other hand, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lo Shu-lei (羅淑蕾) said the delay may have been an administrative error.
“Whoever is in charge of making the report should come forward to explain; otherwise, only a few days’ delay on the release of the report may turn into a big controversial issue later,” Lo said.
Earlier last month Lai made a three-day visit to Hong Kong to review the operations of the MAC’s Hong Kong office, saying her visit was evidence that positive cross-strait exchanges had improved Taiwan-Hong Kong ties
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY STAFF WRITER
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