Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator Mach Ngoc Tran (麥玉珍) yesterday apologized for hiding cuttings of dragon fruit inside her luggage to plant them at her family home in Vietnam decades ago, which officials said was illegal.
Mach related the story on Wednesday during an event in Taichung’s Fongyuan District (豐原) organized by the Ministry of Agriculture to mark the first batch of red dragon fruit export to Japan.
After lawmakers and agriculture officials said it is illegal to export plants, fruits and seeds without government approval, Mach apologized at a legislative meeting yesterday.
Photo: Ou Su-mei, Taipei Times
“Now I know what I did was wrong, and hope people would not contravene the law like I did,” she said. “That was about 30 years ago. At the time I was not aware of the prohibition and I would not do so now, knowing it is against the law.”
“I have also received messages asking for help, because when migrant workers and new residents come to Taiwan, unaware of the prohibition, they often carry many different items that are seized by customs, which might cause them to be denied entry,” Mach added.
Mach said she was reminded by party colleagues to be more prudent when making public comments.
Vice Premier Cheng Li-chun (鄭麗君) said at the event that it took eight years of diligent effort by stakeholders to enable the first shipment of red dragon fruit to Japan.
A lot of work was needed to ensure stable and high-quality production to pass Tokyo’s tests, she added.
“Taiwan is known as a ‘fruit kingdom’... My kids love to eat red dragon fruit,” she said.
“It has been a difficult journey of eight years, but we are ready to share the fruit with our Japanese friends. This is an important milestone and it can boost our friendly relations with Japan, a major export market for Taiwanese agricultural products,” she added.
When it was Mach’s turn to speak, she told a story about her taking cuttings of dragon fruit from Taiwan to Vietnam.
“Back in my hometown in Vietnam, my family has a 10-hectare farm for growing coffee, fruits and other produce. In Vietnam, we used to only have white dragon fruit. After coming to Taiwan, I was delighted with the sweet-tasting red dragon fruit,” she said. “So I made cuttings of red dragon fruit cactus and put it inside my luggage when I took a flight back to Vietnam to grow it at my family farm.”
Her remarks immediately drew a backlash as a lot of people in the audience knew it is illegal to export Taiwanese fruits and seeds without government approval.
“The variety could not adapt to conditions in Vietnam, and we could not grow it there,” Mach later said.
“I have found that Taiwanese fruits and vegetables are very tasty, and I always promote them at international events,” she said. “Everyone should help promote it to all parts of the world.”
Minister of Agriculture Chen Junne-jih (陳駿季) said that Mach might have been joking.
“Or maybe it did happen, but I urge people to know that cultivars and seeds came from the painstaking efforts of our farmers. We must protect our leading edge in fruit production, and must not take Taiwan-produced seeds and cultivars to other countries,” Chen said.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Huang Jie (黃捷) said that the TPP legislator contravened Article 51 of the Plant Variety and Plant Seed Act (植物品種及種苗法), which includes a maximum fine of NT$2.5 million (US$76,970).
Mach later on Wednesday apologized, saying that as a new resident of Taiwan, she was not familiar with the law at the time.
“I offer my sincere apology on this matter, and am grateful for people’s understanding and acceptance,” she said. “My intention was to use my own experience to remind people to abide by the regulations.”
Mach became a naturalized citizen after marrying a Taiwanese man in 1994, settling in Changhua County. She later divorced him, citing domestic violence.
She worked as a Vietnamese-language interpreter for local police and government agencies, and later founded associations for new residents from Southeast Asia, China and other countries.
Born in Bien Hoa Province, Vietnam, Mach said her family members are farmers there.
TPP included her in the party’s legislator-at-large list before the Jan. 13 election citing her advocacy for new residents and migrants. She has been serving as a legislator since February.
WAITING GAME: The US has so far only offered a ‘best rate tariff,’ which officials assume is about 15 percent, the same as Japan, a person familiar with the matter said Taiwan and the US have completed “technical consultations” regarding tariffs and a finalized rate is expected to be released soon, Executive Yuan spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) told a news conference yesterday, as a 90-day pause on US President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs is set to expire today. The two countries have reached a “certain degree of consensus” on issues such as tariffs, nontariff trade barriers, trade facilitation, supply chain resilience and economic security, Lee said. They also discussed opportunities for cooperation, investment and procurement, she said. A joint statement is still being negotiated and would be released once the US government has made
NEW GEAR: On top of the new Tien Kung IV air defense missiles, the military is expected to place orders for a new combat vehicle next year for delivery in 2028 Mass production of Tien Kung IV (Sky Bow IV) missiles is expected to start next year, with plans to order 122 pods, the Ministry of National Defense’s (MND) latest list of regulated military material showed. The document said that the armed forces would obtain 46 pods of the air defense missiles next year and 76 pods the year after that. The Tien Kung IV is designed to intercept cruise missiles and ballistic missiles to an altitude of 70km, compared with the 60km maximum altitude achieved by the Missile Segment Enhancement variant of PAC-3 systems. A defense source said yesterday that the number of
‘CRUDE’: The potential countermeasure is in response to South Africa renaming Taiwan’s representative offices and the insistence that it move out of Pretoria Taiwan is considering banning exports of semiconductors to South Africa after the latter unilaterally downgraded and changed the names of Taiwan’s two representative offices, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday. On Monday last week, the South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation unilaterally released a statement saying that, as of April 1, the Taipei Liaison Offices in Pretoria and Cape Town had been renamed the “Taipei Commercial Office in Johannesburg” and the “Taipei Commercial Office in Cape Town.” Citing UN General Assembly Resolution 2758, it said that South Africa “recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the sole
Taiwanese exports to the US are to be subject to a 20 percent tariff starting on Thursday next week, according to an executive order signed by US President Donald Trump yesterday. The 20 percent levy was the same as the tariffs imposed on Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh by Trump. It was higher than the tariffs imposed on Japan, South Korea and the EU (15 percent), as well as those on the Philippines (19 percent). A Taiwan official with knowledge of the matter said it is a "phased" tariff rate, and negotiations would continue. "Once negotiations conclude, Taiwan will obtain a better
RSS