Presidential Office Deputy Secretary-General Yao Jen-to (姚人多) was yesterday elected as vice chairman and secretary-general of the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF).
Yao’s election was confirmed by the board of the foundation, spokeswoman Kuan An-lu (管安露) said.
Following his confirmation, Yao said he would work with the foundation’s staff to handle cross-strait affairs based on the principle of serving the interests of people on the both sides of the Taiwan Strait, Kuan said.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
Asked how Yao’s stance on Taiwanese independence might affect his job, Kuan said that politics should not influence people-to-people exchanges between Taiwan and China, adding that the two sides of the strait have engaged in exchanges for more than 30 years.
Taiwan has always kept an open mind about cross-strait exchanges and would not turn down opportunities for communication with pro-unification factions in China, Kuan said.
During a public forum in 2013, Yao, at the time an associate professor of sociology at National Tsing Hua University, said that Taiwanese independence had lost its place in the mainstream and urged the Democratic Progressive Party to facilitate democratization in China by promoting Taiwan’s experiences in furthering democracy, freedom and human rights.
Yao on Wednesday resigned from his Presidential Office position to take up the new role, Kuan said.
Yao is a capable person who would contribute to the positive development of cross-strait relations, foundation chairwoman Katharine Chang (張小月) said.
The foundation would in August or September set up a telephone hotline to provide information to young people who wish to study in China, she said.
It would also continue to improve its services for China-based Taiwanese businesses, Chinese spouses of Taiwanese and Chinese students in Taiwan, Chang added.
Additional reporting by staff writer
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
UNKNOWN TRAJECTORY: The storm could move in four possible directions, with the fourth option considered the most threatening to Taiwan, meteorologist Lin De-en said A soon-to-be-formed tropical storm east of the Philippines could begin affecting Taiwan on Wednesday next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The storm, to be named Fung-wong (鳳凰), is forecast to approach Taiwan on Tuesday next week and could begin affecting the weather in Taiwan on Wednesday, CWA forecaster Huang En-hung (黃恩鴻) said, adding that its impact might be amplified by the combined effect with the northeast monsoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the system’s center was 2,800km southeast of Oluanbi (鵝鑾鼻). It was moving northwest at 18kph. Meteorologist Lin De-en (林得恩) on Facebook yesterday wrote that the would-be storm is surrounded by
RSS