Only 587 Chinese free independent travelers (FIT) have visited Taiwan since the program was launched one month ago, the National Immigration Agency said.
The figure was seen as a gloomy forecast for the FIT program, which allows up to 500 Chinese per day to visit without having to be part of a tour group, or be chaperoned by a tour guide.
However, Mainland Affairs Council Deputy Minister Liu Te-shun (劉德勳) said the apparent lack of interest in the program only showed that more time was needed for both sides to become familiar with the new system.
“When travel exchanges of tour groups took effect in 2008, the situation was as bad,” he said. “Look at what we have achieved now.”
The Tourism Bureau said more than 3 million Chinese have visited Taiwan since the government opened the door to Chinese tour groups three years ago, bringing in NT$195.8 billion (US$6.57 billion).
Liu said seasonal factors should also be taken into consideration because Chinese students, seen as the biggest base for the program, are preparing for their exam season.
Tourism Bureau Deputy Director-General David Hsieh (謝謂君) said the bureau had approved about 1,000 applications from Chinese FITs.
He said he expects the program to be in full swing once Taiwan establishes a good reputation among individual Chinese tourists.
Travel Agent Association chairman Yao Ta-kuang (姚大光) said he was satisfied with the tourist traffic so far.
“The program doesn’t operate like a tap,” Yao said. “Give it a little time and we will see the daily cap hit its limit.”
Not everyone in the association agrees.
“We didn’t expect the quota to be met right away, but we are shocked that so few solo tourists have come so far,” said Roger Hsu (許高慶), secretary-general of the Travel Agent Association.
Hsu said travel agencies were probably not enthusiastic about promoting individual tourism, considered high-risk and low-profit, because they could be suspended if anyone goes missing.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY AFP
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
RSS