The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday thanked the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) and like-minded countries for expressing concern over the Ugandan government denying entry to Taiwanese.
Department of European Affairs Director-General Eric Huang (黃鈞耀) said the IPAC yesterday issued a statement expressing deep concern over the recent action of “Ugandan immigration authorities in forcing Taiwanese travelers to present People’s Republic of China (PRC) passports as a condition of entry.”
“This represents a clear act of coerced discrimination, wherein a sovereign third nation appears to have succumbed to pressure to enforce the political demands of the PRC,” he quoted the statement as saying.
Photo: CNA
The statement says that “arbitrarily rejecting valid Taiwanese passports and compelling travelers to claim documentation from a power that does not govern them violates fundamental principles of non-discrimination embedded in international civil aviation standards, including International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) guidelines.”
“The MOFA welcomes and thanks the IPAC and like-minded partners, for taking tangible actions to speak out for Taiwan and expressing their grave concerns over Taiwanese being denied entry at Uganda’s airport,” Huang said.
He urged the Ugandan government to “face the fact that the Republic of China (ROC), Taiwan has independent sovereignty, and that neither the ROC and nor the PRC is subordinate to the other.”
The ministry also urged Uganda not to impose inappropriate entry restrictions due to political factors, as they could have a negative effect on bilateral exchanges and mutual interests.
Separately, the ministry yesterday condemned and rejected Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s recent pro-China remarks, saying that they seriously threaten regional peace and stability.
Ibrahim in an interview on Sunday endorsed a “one China” policy and suggested that Taiwan is a separatist province of China.
Malaysia is a democracy, and Anwar has long portrayed himself as a champion of democracy and human rights, it said, adding that he should uphold universal values such as democracy, freedom, human rights and the rule of law, while respecting and safeguarding the will of the people.
Any political maneuvering that echoes calls to unilaterally change the “status quo” across the Taiwan Strait through threats or the use of force not only undermines the commitment of Taiwanese to safeguard a “democratic Taiwan,” but also severely damages political trust between Taiwan and Malaysia, it said.
Taiwan and Malaysia have long maintained close economic and trade ties, it said, adding that given the growing links between national sovereignty and economic security, Anwar’s one-sided support for China could undermine Taiwanese businesses’ confidence in investing in Malaysia.
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