The Cambodian government yesterday suspended its plan to send 17 Taiwanese suspected of telecommunication fraud to China, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Cambodian authorities on Monday said 13 Taiwanese were arrested along with 14 Chinese on Monday the previous week, and that another eight Taiwanese were detained on Saturday.
“We will deport them to China this week. China will send a plane to pick up all of them,” Agence France-Presse yesterday quoted Cambodian Department of Immigration Director of Inspection and Procedure Major General Uk Heisela as saying in Phnom Penh.
Photo: CNA
However, the foreign ministry yesterday afternoon said that the scheduled deportation of the 17 Taiwanese to China had been canceled.
The director-general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office, in Ho Chi Minh city, Liang Guang-chung (梁光中), is in Cambodia to convey the government’s insistence that its extraterritorial jurisdiction be honored, the ministry said.
Due to Cambodia’s ties with Beijing and the Chinese government’s reported intervention, Liang and other Taiwanese officials have yet to be given access to the accused, although several Taiwanese businesspeople working in Cambodia have been able to see them, the ministry added.
Presidential Office spokesman Alex Huang (黃重諺) said that Taiwan would not budge on its right to exercise extraterritorial jurisdiction.
Any unilateral move by Beijing would only deepen negative perceptions in Taiwan about China, he said.
The government stands fast in its commitment to crack down on criminal behavior, and believes that international cooperation and mutual legal assistance systems would go a long way toward securing the rights of the victims, Huang said.
In related news, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Katharine Chang (張小月) yesterday afternoon told lawmakers that the council has notified its Chinese counterpart — the Taiwan Affairs Office — of the government’s stance, which is that the Taiwanese should be sent to Taiwan for judicial procedures.
“However, the [Chinese authorities] have not responded to our calls,” Chang said.
Additional reporting by Alison Hsiao and AFP
INCREASED RISK: The Omicron BA.2.75 subvariant has higher immune evasive capacity, but the CECC is more concerned about newer subvariants such as XBB and BQ.1 With the peak season for infectious respiratory diseases coming to an end, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday said that details of the next phase of lifting COVID-19 masking rules — removing the mask requirement in most indoor settings — are to be announced this week. Discussions on lifting other COVID-19 restrictions are also being held, including further easing border control measures, home isolation requirements and revising the definition for reporting cases, while also downgrading COVID-19 to a lower category of notifiable communicable disease, said Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝), who heads the CECC. As the daily
GUT FEELING: In the leaked memo, US Air Force General Mike Minihan urged mobile command personnel to go to a firing range, shoot at a target and ‘aim for the head’ A four-star US Air Force general has warned of a conflict with China as early as 2025 — most likely over Taiwan — and urged his commanders to push their units to achieve maximum operational battle readiness this year. In an internal memorandum that first emerged on social media on Friday, and was later confirmed as genuine by the Pentagon, Air Mobility Command Commander General Mike Minihan said that the main goal should be to deter “and, if required, defeat” China. “I hope I am wrong. My gut tells me we will fight in 2025,” Minihan said. Minihan said that Taiwan’s presidential election
PEACE AND STABILITY: The two nations called for the peaceful resolution of cross-Taiwan Strait issues through dialogue without the threat or use of force or coercion The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday thanked France and Australia for voicing their support for Taiwan, saying that peace across the Taiwan Strait is crucial to the stability and prosperity of international society. France and Australia on Monday pledged to deepen ties with Taiwan and reiterated their support for its participation in international organizations at this year’s Foreign and Defense Ministerial Consultations in Paris. The meeting between French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna, French Minister of the Armed Forces Sebastien Lecornu, Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong (黃英賢) and Australian Minister for Defence Richard Marles was the second
DEMOCRATIC SYSTEM: Czech president-elect Petr Pavel said his nation stands firmly on the side of democracy and would boost cooperation with Taipei in all aspects Czech president-elect Petr Pavel spoke by telephone with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday, a highly unusual move given the lack of formal ties and a diplomatic coup for Taipei. Tsai spoke with Pavel for 15 minutes in a harmonious atmosphere, Presidential Office spokeswoman Lin Yu-chan (林聿禪) said, adding that Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) was also present during the conversation. Lin quoted Pavel as telling Tsai that Taiwan is a trustworthy partner, adding that the Czech Republic stands firmly on the side of democracy and supports Taiwan in maintaining a lively democratic system free from authoritarian coercion. The Czech Republic would