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
CHAOS: Iranians took to the streets playing celebratory music after reports of Khamenei’s death on Saturday, while mourners also gathered in Tehran yesterday Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a major attack on Iran launched by Israel and the US, throwing the future of the Islamic republic into doubt and raising the risk of regional instability. Iranian state television and the state-run IRNA news agency announced the 86-year-old’s death early yesterday. US President Donald Trump said it gave Iranians their “greatest chance” to “take back” their country. The announcements came after a joint US and Israeli aerial bombardment that targeted Iranian military and governmental sites. Trump said the “heavy and pinpoint bombing” would continue through the week or as long
An Emirates flight from Dubai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport yesterday afternoon, the first service of the airline since the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Saturday. Flight EK366 took off from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at 3:51am yesterday and landed at 4:02pm before taxiing to the airport’s D6 gate at Terminal 2 at 4:08pm, data from the airport and FlightAware, a global flight tracking site, showed. Of the 501 passengers on the flight, 275 were Taiwanese, including 96 group tour travelers, the data showed. Tourism Administration Deputy Director-General Huang He-ting (黃荷婷) greeted Taiwanese passengers at the airport and
TRUST: The KMT said it respected the US’ timing and considerations, and hoped it would continue to honor its commitments to helping Taiwan bolster its defenses and deterrence US President Donald Trump is delaying a multibillion-dollar arms sale to Taiwan to ensure his visit to Beijing is successful, a New York Times report said. The weapons sales package has stalled in the US Department of State, the report said, citing US officials it did not identify. The White House has told agencies not to push forward ahead of Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), it said. The two last month held a phone call to discuss trade and geopolitical flashpoints ahead of the summit. Xi raised the Taiwan issue and urged the US to handle arms sales to
State-run CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) yesterday said that it had confirmed on Saturday night with its liquefied natural gas (LNG) and crude oil suppliers that shipments are proceeding as scheduled and that domestic supplies remain unaffected. The CPC yesterday announced the gasoline and diesel prices will rise by NT$0.2 and NT$0.4 per liter, respectively, starting Monday, citing Middle East tensions and blizzards in the eastern United States. CPC also iterated it has been reducing the proportion of crude oil imports from the Middle East and diversifying its supply sources in the past few years in response to geopolitical risks, expanding
RSS