Following China’s obstruction of Taiwan’s participation in this year’s International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) assembly in Canada, government officials said they are preparing to take part in an Interpol summit in November.
Interpol is to hold its annual summit in Bali, Indonesia, from Nov. 7 to 10 and Taiwan has applied to join the summit as an observer, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs official said, adding that the ministry and national security agencies are seeking international support for the nation’s bid to observe the Interpol meeting.
The official, who declined to be named, said agencies are monitoring the situation, as the summit would be the first one since US President Barack Obama signed a bill on March 18 ensuring US support for Taiwan’s attendance as an Interpol observer, which was ratified by the US Senate.
The bill requires Interpol Washington, which falls under the authority of the US Department of Justice, to grant observer status to Taiwan and requires the organization to petition other members to support the nation’s attendance.
Interpol regulations describe two methods of application for observer status — joint application by an inviting nation with the organization’s secretary-general, or application by the secretary-general after approval by the executive committee.
Ministry sources said the first method would most likely be used for the nation’s observer application, as the process would be handled with US support.
Sources said that since Interpol is not associated with the UN, there is no prerequisite for an applicant to be recognized as a sovereign nation, adding that Interpol’s secretary-general is Germany’s Jurgen Stock.
Some people said that Taiwan’s loss of the ICAO bid was caused by the organization’s secretary-general, Liu Fang (柳方), being Chinese.
The sources said that the government has a contingency plan regardless of the outcome of the bid, which, in the event of failure, might call on the nation’s allies to voice their support.
When asked if the government has changed its strategy after the failed ICAO bid, the official said: “In the interest of continued participation in international organizations, we have always had plans in place to adapt to changes. This should not be seen as a newly adjusted strategy.”
The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee yesterday approved proposed amendments to the Amusement Tax Act (娛樂稅法) that would abolish taxes on films, cultural activities and competitive sporting events, retaining the fee only for dance halls and golf courses. The proposed changes would set the maximum tax rate for dance halls and golf courses at 50 and 20 percent respectively, with local governments authorized to suspend the levies. Article 2 of the act says that “amusement tax shall be levied on tickets sold or fees charged by amusement places, facilities or activities” in six categories: “Cinema; professional singing, story-telling, dancing, circus, magic show, acrobatics
Tainan, Taipei and New Taipei City recorded the highest fines nationwide for illegal accommodations in the first quarter of this year, with fines issued in the three cities each exceeding NT$7 million (US$220,639), Tourism Administration data showed. Among them, Taipei had the highest number of illegal short-term rental units, with 410. There were 3,280 legally registered hotels nationwide in the first quarter, down by 14 properties, or 0.43 percent, from a year earlier, likely indicating operators exiting the market, the agency said. However, the number of unregistered properties rose to 1,174, including 314 illegal hotels and 860 illegal short-term rental
INFLATION UP? The IMF said CPI would increase to 1.5 percent this year, while the DGBAS projected it would rise to 1.68 percent, with GDP per capita of US$44,181 The IMF projected Taiwan’s real GDP would grow 5.2 percent this year, up from its 2.1 percent outlook in January, despite fears of global economic disruptions sparked by the US-Iran conflict. Taiwan’s consumer price index (CPI) is projected to increase to 1.5 percent, while unemployment would be 3.4 percent, roughly in line with estimates for Asia as a whole, the international body wrote in its Global Economic Outlook Report published in the US on Monday. The figures are comparatively better than the IMF outlook for the rest of the world, which pegged real GDP growth at 3.1 percent, down from 3.3 percent
ECONOMIC COERCION: Such actions are often inconsistently applied, sometimes resumed, and sometimes just halted, the Presidential Office spokeswoman said The government backs healthy and orderly cross-strait exchanges, but such arrangements should not be made with political conditions attached and never be used as leverage for political maneuvering or partisan agendas, Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said yesterday. Kuo made the remarks after China earlier in the day announced 10 new “incentive measures” for Taiwan, following a landmark meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) in Beijing on Friday. The measures, unveiled by China’s Xinhua news agency, include plans to resume individual travel by residents of Shanghai and China’s Fujian
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