The Republic of China (ROC) Air Force yesterday called on travel agencies to help prevent Chinese tourists from visiting military bases that are open to the public.
The air force said that travel agencies should not arrange for Chinese tourists to visit any bases or attend military shows.
Meanwhile, the air force added that the military only opens the nation’s military bases to ROC nationals and Taiwanese should have their ROC ID cards with them in order to clear security checks if they wish to visit a military base.
Photo: Yu Tai-lang, Taipei Times
The statement came in the wake of a report that several Chinese tourists were expelled from the Hualien Air Force Base last month after they were found to be attending a military show.
On May 29, a military show open to the public was held at the Hualien base. Various weapon systems, including F-16s, Mirage-2000s, IDF fighter aircraft and Hawk missiles were on display.
A group of Chinese tourists entered the base by bus without undergoing a security check. Once inside the base, the tourists were reported to have taken several pictures.
Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau agents who were at the base discovered the Chinese tourists and informed the base about the matter. The base then expelled the tourists.
According to regulations, visitors have to present their ROC ID cards and register before they are allowed to watch a military show at any of the nation’s military bases. However, the Hualien base did not check IDs that day.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Herman Shuai (帥化民) said yesterday that actual military secrets would not be evident during a military show.
However, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯) said the incident suggested that there are gaps in the nation’s national security system.
The incident comes as a program is set to begin before the end of this month which will open Taiwan to free independent travelers from China, allowing a maximum of 500 Chinese a day to arrive for a period of no more than 15 days.
‘NON-RED’: Taiwan and Ireland should work together to foster a values-driven, democratic economic system, leveraging their complementary industries, Lai said President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday expressed hopes for closer ties between Taiwan and Ireland, and that both countries could collaborate to create a values-driven, democracy-centered economic system. He made the remarks while meeting with an Irish cross-party parliamentary delegation visiting Taiwan. The delegation, led by John McGuinness, deputy speaker of the Irish house of representatives, known as the Dail, includes Irish lawmakers Malcolm Byrne, Barry Ward, Ken O’Flynn and Teresa Costello. McGuinness, who chairs the Ireland-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Association, is a friend of Taiwan, and under his leadership, the association’s influence has grown over the past few years, Lai said. Ireland is
A saleswoman, surnamed Chen (陳), earlier this month was handed an 18-month prison term for embezzling more than 2,000 pairs of shoes while working at a department store in Tainan. The Tainan District Court convicted Chen of embezzlement in a ruling on July 7, sentencing her to prison for illegally profiting NT$7.32 million (US$248,929) at the expense of her employer. Chen was also given the opportunity to reach a financial settlement, but she declined. Chen was responsible for the sales counter of Nike shoes at Tainan’s Shinkong Mitsukoshi Zhongshan branch, where she had been employed since October 2019. She had previously worked
FINAL COUNTDOWN: About 50,000 attended a pro-recall rally yesterday, while the KMT and the TPP plan to rally against the recall votes today Democracy activists, together with arts and education representatives, yesterday organized a motorcade, while thousands gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei in the evening in support of tomorrow’s recall votes. Recall votes for 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and suspended Hsinchu City mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) are to be held tomorrow, while recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers are scheduled for Aug. 23. The afternoon motorcade was led by the Spring Breeze Culture and Arts Foundation, the Tyzen Hsiao Foundation and the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association, and was joined by delegates from the Taiwan Statebuilding Party and the Taiwan Solidarity
TRANSPORT DISRUPTION: More than 100 ferry services were suspended due to rough seas and strong winds, and eight domestic flights were canceled, the ministry said Tropical Storm Wipha intensified slightly yesterday as it passed closest to Taiwan, dumping more than 200mm of rain in Hualien and Taitung counties, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 11am, Wipha was about 210km southwest of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) and was moving west-northwest at 27km per hour (kph). The storm carried maximum sustained winds of 101kph and gusts reaching 126kph, with a 150km radius of strong winds, CWA data showed. Wipha’s outer rainbands began sweeping across Taiwan early yesterday, delivering steady rainfall in the east and scattered showers in other regions, forecasters said. More heavy rain was expected, especially in the eastern
RSS