Taipei joined a number of governments in the region yesterday in severely criticizing Beijing for the inclusion in newly revised passports of an outline of China that includes the entire South China Sea, hemmed in by dashes, as well as depictions of scenic spots in Taiwan — Nantou’s Sun Moon Lake and Hualien’s Chingshui Cliffs.
The change, which was first reported by the Financial Times on Wednesday, highlights China’s longstanding claim to the South China Sea in its entirety, though parts of the waters are also claimed by Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei and Malaysia.
China’s official maps have long included Taiwan and the South China Sea as Chinese territory, but the act of including those in its passports could be seen as a provocation since it would require other nations to tacitly endorse those claims by affixing their official seals to the documents.
Photo: Reuters
Presidential Office spokesman Fan Chiang Tai-chi (范姜泰基) said President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) hoped China would not take inappropriate action to break the hard-earned stability across the Taiwan Strait.
Fan Chiang said the two famous tourist destinations are “under the jurisdiction of the Republic of China [ROC] government and not under the control of China.”
He said Ma had instructed the Mainland Affairs Council to issue a statement on the issue.
Fang Chiang said the government promotes cross-strait exchanges on the basis of “not recognizing each other’s sovereignty and not denying each other’s right to rule.”
“At present, cross-strait relations are enjoying the most unprecedented peace and stability in six decades,” Fang Chiang said.
In an unusually strongly worded statement, the council urged the Chinese government to address the issue of Taiwan’s sovereignty pragmatically.
The council said the two top tourist sites are part of ROC territory and that China’s move had damaged the mutual trust between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait.
“China has ignored the truth and sparked disputes by including pictures of our territory and landscape in its new Chinese passports. The ROC government will not accept its act,” it said.
“It should put aside disputes and face up to the reality. We urge it to avoid giving the impression that it is trying to change the status quo unilaterally and creating obstacles in cross-strait development,” it said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs declined to comment on the matter. In accordance with the division of functions between government departments, China-related affairs are under the mandate of the council, ministry spokesperson Steve Hsia (夏季昌) said.
The pan-green camp said the unilateral move had “infringed on Taiwan’s territorial sovereignty” and demanded that Ma protest the move.
“This is an obvious violation of Taiwan’s territorial sovereignty and Ma and the council should immediately file protests against Beijing. If the council sits on the issue and does nothing about it, I will propose slashing the council’s budget,” Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said.
“While Ma has always been hawkish in his dealings with Japan, he has been soft on China. The move is solid proof of Beijing’s attempt to eliminate the ROC. I can’t find a reason for Ma to stay mum on the issue,” DPP Legislator Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) said.
DPP Legislator Pasuya Yao (姚文智) said that Vietnam and the Philippines had both lodged protests and he condemned Beijing for “taking every opportunity to take advantage of Taiwan.”
Taiwan Solidarity Union caucus whip Huang Wen-ling (黃文玲) criticized the government’s slow reaction, saying China began issuing the new passports five months ago.
Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario told reporters in Manila on Thursday that he had sent a note to the Chinese embassy that his country “strongly protests” the map outline.
He said China’s claims include an area that is “clearly part of the Philippines’ territory and maritime domain.”
The Vietnamese government said it had also sent a diplomatic note to the Chinese embassy in Hanoi, demanding that Beijing remove the “erroneous content” printed in the passports.
In Beijing, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the new passport was issued based on international standards.
“The outline map of China on the passport is not directed against any particular country,” a spokeswoman said on Thursday.
China maintains it has ancient claims to all of the South China Sea, despite much of it being within the exclusive economic zones of its Southeast Asian neighbors.
Tropical Storm Koinu is expected to come closest to Taiwan from Wednesday through Friday as it passes through the Bashi Channel, but it remained uncertain how it would affect the weather, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 8am yesterday, Koinu was about 1,000km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, and was moving northwest at 12kph, the CWA said. Koinu is likely to strengthen into a typhoon today or tomorrow and turn west as it enters the Bashi Channel to the south of Taiwan proper, CWA forecaster Chao Hung (趙竑) said. The storm’s trajectory is still unclear, so more time is
Taichung prosecutors yesterday indicted three people on charges of fraud for allegedly passing off watches assembled in Taiwan as Swiss-made timepieces and earning NT$400 million (US$12.4 million) in illicit gains. The Taichung branch office of the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau said in a statement that the group, headed by Mei Hua Precision Industry Co (梅華精密) and Laora Trading Co (仁徠貿易) manager Yang Hung-pin (楊鴻斌), had purchased the rights to use the Swiss trademark Ogival years ago and from November 2006 to December 2020 sold 26,282 counterfeit watches in department stores and online platforms in Taiwan. The branch office said they received
PALAU LAUNCHES: The source said that Taiwanese military personnel traveled to Palau, where a US brigade watched their work amid plans for a defense network The military last month participated in live-fire launches of MM-104F Patriot (PAC-3) missiles under US observation in an undisclosed location in Palau, a step forward in a US-led plan to create a joint defense missile system in the first island chain, a source said on condition of anonymity. The PAC-3 is the mainstay surface-to-air missile of the US, NATO and democratic nations in East Asia, the source said, adding that it has never been live-tested within Taiwan’s borders, the source said. The proximity of Taiwan to China and China’s close surveillance of the nation’s borders and nearby sea zones is a significant
TRAJECTORY: Koinu’s outer rim is expected to reach Orchid Island early tomorrow and Taitung at about noon, where waves of at least 6m are forecast A sea warning for Typhoon Koinu was issued at 11:30pm last night, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that a land warning could be issued today. High waves of about 2m were observed in Taitung yesterday, while waves of 6m or higher were forecast for today, said Huang Chia-mei (黃嘉美), head of the CWA’s Taitung Weather Station. At noon yesterday, Koinu was about 660km southeast of Taitung, she said, adding that it was moving more to the north and its center could possibly make landfall. The storm’s outer rim would likely reach Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) in the early hours tomorrow and
RSS