The government is offering a reward of up to NT$4,000 for information that could lead to the arrest of “missing” Vietnamese tourists, National Immigration Agency (NIA) Director-General Chiu Feng-kuang (邱豐光) said yesterday.
Chiu’s announcement came after 148 Vietnamese tourists “disappeared” shortly after arriving in Taiwan on Dec. 21 and Dec. 23 in four tour groups.
Of the 148 tourists, 113 remain unaccounted for, Chiu said.
The Vietnamese were visiting Taiwan as part of the government’s “Kuan Hung Pilot Project,” which allows electronic visa applications for groups of five tourists or more from Indonesia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and India.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Dec. 27 announced that it had suspended e-visa applications for groups of Vietnamese tourists, but said that individuals wishing to visit Taiwan could still apply for visas through its representative offices in Vietnam.
The tourists had received assistance and their “disappearance” was premeditated, Chiu said.
He urged Taiwanese employers not to hire illegal immigrants, because they could be fined between NT$150,000 and NT$750,000 for contravening the Employment Service Act (就業服務法).
The NIA would continue to work with the National Policy Agency to track down the remaining missing Vietnamese, Chiu said.
The agency would also investigate whether any illegal travel agency or human trafficking rings were involved in the case, Chiu added.
To prevent similar incidents, Chiu said the NIA would implement a series of coordinated measures, including more rigorous reviews of Vietnamese group visa applications.
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