The Taiwan International Student Movement yesterday said it would protest today outside the Ministry of Education in Taipei against a policy that excludes some Chinese students from returning to Taiwan amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since June 17, the ministry has allowed foreign students from 19 “low risk” and “medium-low risk” countries and regions to enter Taiwan.
On July 22, it announced that it was relaxing restrictions to include students from all countries and regions who are graduating this semester and on Wednesday it further expanded entry to students enrolled in degree programs.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
A letter sent by the ministry on Wednesday to universities did not exclude students from China.
However, speaking to reporters later that day, Deputy Minister of Education Lio Mon-chi (劉孟奇) said that due to “cross-strait related” considerations, only Chinese students who are graduating this semester would be allowed to return.
The students’ group criticized the policy on Facebook, calling the exclusion of Chinese students an example of politics overriding the right to study.
Photo: CNA
Another students’ group said that only students from China, Hong Kong and Macau have been subjected to the most stringent entry restrictions, while students from many high-risk countries and regions have be allowed to enter Taiwan.
Chinese students should not been blocked due to political factors, the second group said.
Quarantine-related costs for overseas students are too high, both groups said, adding that staying at a disease prevention hotel for 15 days, and paying for meals, could cost several tens of thousands of New Taiwan dollars.
The ministry should subsidize these costs for overseas students, especially those with financial troubles, the groups said.
Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chen Ming-tong (陳明通) yesterday said that since Taiwan on July 20 opened the door to Chinese students who are to graduate this semester, only 29 of approximately 3,000 who qualify have returned.
The council doubts whether Chinese authorities would let them come, Chen said.
The goal was to allow Chinese students and children with one Taiwanese and one Chinese parent to return, he said, adding that policy adjustments would be made based on developments amid the pandemic.
The council on Wednesday night said that there have been several cases recently of Chinese authorities preventing Chinese students from traveling to Taiwan.
As this has happened to Chinese students who urgently need to return to Taiwan to complete their studies, it is difficult to believe that Chinese authorities would allow others who are not to graduate soon to return, the council said.
National Taiwan University yesterday said in a statement that it “deeply regrets” the ministry’s decision not to include Chinese students in its latest policy.
Additional reporting by Chung Li-hua and Sherry Hsiao
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary
TAIWAN IS TAIWAN: US Representative Tom Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as ‘Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China’ The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year. The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC. The act includes US$831.5 billion in
‘WORLD WAR III’: Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said the aid would inflame tensions, but her amendment was rejected 421 votes against six The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal 2026, which includes US$500 million for Taiwan. The bill, which totals US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending, passed in a 221-209 vote. According to the bill, the funds for Taiwan would be administered by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency and would remain available through Sept. 30, 2027, for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative. The legislation authorizes the US Secretary of Defense, with the agreement of the US Secretary of State, to use the funds to assist Taiwan in procuring defense articles and services, and military training. Republican Representative