The Australian government has cancelled the plans of the minister of Transportation and Communications, Yeh Chu-lan (葉菊蘭), to visit the northern state of Queensland after denying her a visa to avoid angering China, an Australian official said yesterday.
A verbal spat over the issue erupting between officials from Queensland and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade -- a conflict over authority between state and federal governments -- contributed to Yeh's visa denial.
A spokesman for Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer told the Taipei Times by phone yesterday that the visit would "not be convenient" in light of "current developments in [Australia's] relations with Taiwan and China."
The spokesman declined to elaborate on what the developments might be and instead emphasized that Australia adheres to the "one China" policy that recognizes Taiwan as a part of China.
"We have a `one China' policy and as such our official relations with Taiwan are considered in that light," the spokesman said, who added that the visa request was first denied on May 25 and reconfirmed on June 13.
However he explained that "part of the problem" was that Jim Soorley, lord mayor of Brisbane, Queensland's state capital, had offered the official invitation to Yeh without approval from the federal government.
Responding to the visa denial, Soorley accused the central government of "hypocrisy" after allowing Minister of Foreign Affairs Tien Hung-mao (
However officials from both Australia and Taiwan had stated that Tien's late-January visit had been in a private capacity as part of his vacation, while Yeh's visit scheduled during July and August would be conducted in a semi-official capacity for the purpose of further developing commercial ties.
Yeh's visit to Brisbane would cause far less concern to Beijing than Australian Prime Minister John Howard's foreign policy support for the US or the Taiwan Strait incident involving Australian warships in April, Soorley was quoted as saying in the report.
``I'm amazed at the stupidity of this foreign minister and this government,'' Soorley said. ``We all support the `one China' policy, but we have ministers coming down here in a semi-private capacity, so there was going to be no fanfare, no fuss,'' he said.
But Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade countered by saying that Soorley had exceeded his authority by issuing an official invitation to Yeh in April "without any consultation with the foreign minister or his department."
"We regret that the lord mayor of Brisbane's lack of understanding in relation to Australia's policy and current developments in our relations with Taiwan and China have led to the embarrassment of the Taiwanese minister," said the spokesman for Australia's foreign minister.
He said the Australian government would be willing to invite Yeh to Australia at some "mutually convenient" time in the future.
Vice Minister of Transportation and Communications Ho Cheng-tan (
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