Mon, Oct 06, 2003 page3

• Chinese spouses spark legislative row

  SECURITY CONCERNS A group of DPP lawmakers have criticized an amendment that would shorten the time Chinese spouses must wait before earning citizenship

  • By Fiona Lu / STAFF REPORTER
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  Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus leaders need to convince colleagues on the merits of a controversial cross-strait statute before the Legislative Yuan launches a final review on Thursday.

  DPP members differ over the withdrawal of an extension to a compulsory waiting period for Chinese spouses filing for naturalization following a consensus reached by Mainland Affairs Council Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and pan-blue lawmakers last Tuesday.

  Some ruling party lawmakers voiced objections to the withdrawal one day after Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) lawmakers criticized the government's compromise.

  DPP Legislator Trong Chai (蔡同榮) said Chinese nationals married to Taiwanese people should be granted permanent residency as long as they have stayed in Taiwan for eight or more years.

  "But it is unnecessary and unwise to grant them citizenship, which would give them the right to vote and participate in politics, because their mother country remains hostile to Taiwan," Chai said.

  "We have to speak out against the loosening of restrictions against Chinese spouses because of concerns from a great number of our voters," said DPP Legislator Wang Sing-nan (王幸男).

  Wang revealed that he and his DPP colleagues were considering reinforcing the government surveillance of Chinese spouses.

  "The administrative surveillance pledged by the MAC chairwoman, when coupled with the relaxing of restrictions, is at risk because Tsai cannot guarantee her successors will have a similar attitude toward the cross-strait issue," Wang said.

  "Therefore, it is imperative to outline surveillance measures in a related law and prevent any break off of the policy," he said.

  The extension of the waiting period to 11 years from the current eight was outlined in the amendments to the Statute Governing the Relations between the People of Taiwan Area and Mainland Area (兩岸人民關係條例), which were initially scheduled to clear the legislative floor last November.

  Eager to secure legislative approval, Tsai offered on Tuesday to call off the proposal extension in exchange for pan-blue lawmakers' acceptance of maintaining the current eight-year waiting period.

  Beforehand, the pan-blue parties had protested the disparity between rules for Chinese spouses and other non-Taiwanese spouses on the time that they were required to wait before obtaining Taiwanese citizenship.

  Chinese women married to Taiwanese should enjoy the same treatment as their counterparts from other foreign countries, who only need to wait four years before attaining ROC citizenship, said People First Party Legislator Feng Ting-kuo (馮定國) and Lee Ching-hua (李慶華).

  The Tuesday consensus was initially seen as a last-minute breakthrough for the revised cross-strait bill until TSU lawmakers refused to ink the negotiatory conclusion.

  "The TSU opposed the dropping of stricter regulation on Chinese spouses because the situation could go beyond the government's control when the country loosens rules for Chinese immigrants and student recruits of Chinese colleges here," TSU legislative leader Liao Pen-yen (廖本煙) said.

  "We will not flinch from a legislative showdown to decide the passage of these controversial articles," Liao said.

  Members of the DPP's "Mainstream Alliance," including Chai and Wang, spoke out against the shortened waiting period on Wednesday.

  They said that Chinese nationals applying for naturalization should wait for at least 15 years in lights of cross-strait relations.

  They said the government must study the issue further.

  "There are countries that prevent foreign spouses applying for citizenship, with non-citizen spouses only being granted permanent residency," Chai said.

  Legislator Tsai Chi-fang (蔡啟芳), who belongs to the DPP's Justice Alliance, initiated a petition to demand "a Cabinet review on immigration policy and regulations toward Chinese spouses."

  Claiming that Chinese nationals should not acquire citizenship before China offered a renouncement of military force against Taiwan, Tsai collected the signatures of more than 50 DPP colleagues.

  A DPP caucus meeting will be held before Thursday, according to DPP whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘).

  Tsai Ing-wen is also expected to show up in the meeting, where she will hold one-on-one discussions the rebels.
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