Minister of Foreign Affairs Eugene Chien (
He said passport reform is far from concluded and opinions from both the public and lawmakers would be instrumental to the government's final decision on changing the passport cover.
"The ministry has no set stance nor timetable" for the passport cover reforms, Chien said.
Media reports said the government had reached a consensus on the long-delayed passport reform scheme over the Lunar New Year holiday.
The reports said the government had decided to defer announcing the decision at a time when the National Security Council and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were evaluating the possible repercussions of any war against Iraq.
Chien noted that a pair of non-binding resolutions on passport reform were passed by the legislature in its last session contradicted one another. He said this was a reflection of the divided opinion in the legislature on the issue.
The first resolution dictated that there should be no change to the passport cover, while the second one stipulated that "Tai-wan" in Roman script should be added.
"The two resolutions were completely different. The ministry will continue to communicate with the legislature when it opens its next session to see how opinions have developed," Chien said.
Chien said several opinion polls organized by the ministry have indicated that the public is in favor of adding the word "Taiwan."
Some Taiwanese have complained about being mistaken for PRC nationals by immigration officials confused about the difference between the PRC and the ROC.
According to media reports, officials have proposed keeping the words "Republic of China" in Roman script as they appear now on the cover, with "Taiwan" written below in a larger font. The reports said the Presidential Office favors this idea.
Just back from a trip to Europe, DPP Legislator Trong Chai (
Chien announced last July that he would delay a plan to add "Issued in Taiwan" in Roman script to the cover after both opposition and DPP lawmakers opposed the idea.
DPP lawmakers said the suggestion belittled the country and didn't go far enough in clarifying the nation's identity.
Opposition legislators, however, said the proposed addition would be a move towards independence.
DPP legislative whip Chen Chi-mai (
"It has nothing to do with ideology. A recent poll showed that 75 percent of respondents support the initiative to add the word `Taiwan' to the cover," Chen said.
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