The Cross-Strait Marriage Harmony Promotion Association of the ROC held a silent protest in Taipei yesterday outside the National Police Agency's Immigration Office, demanding fair treatment for Chinese spouses in immigration matters.
"On March 1 this year, a new regulation in the Statute Governing the Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (兩岸人民關係條例) was added. Chinese spouses receiving a national identification card are now subject to security clearance by a panel of officials. Yet there was no announcement of this measure prior to the new regulations being enacted," association secretary-general Liu Hsien-wen (劉獻文) said.
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES
Liu said that before the new regulations were introduced, any applications for the permanent-residence identification cards for Chinese spouses only took five days. But since April 15, some Chinese spouses who had filed for applications had yet to receive their cards.
"We then called on the authorities for an update on the status of Chinese spouses and were then informed of the new regulation," Liu said.
In response, Steve Wu (吳學燕), deputy commissioner of the Immigration Office, said that the new regulation had been publicly announced last year.
"On Dec. 29, the bureau announced the introduction of the Regulation for Application for Residency and Permanent Residency of Chinese Spouses (大陸地區人民在台灣地區依親居留長期居留和定居許可辦法)," Wu said.
The Immigration Office's Web site (www.immigration.gov.tw) also noted the new regulation's introduction last Dec. 29, he said.
According to Article 33 of the regulation, authorities in charge of residency matters for spouses from China may invite representatives from the National Security Council, the Mainland Affairs Council, the Ministry of Justice's Bureau of Investigation and other associated agencies to convene a review panel.
Liu said that Chinese spouses who failed port-of-entry interviews when entering the country for the first time were not entitled to ask why they had been rejected.
"The statute stipulates that for the purposes of national security, no explanations are required to be gievn for the cancelation of entry permits for Chinese nationals," Liu said.
Liu hoped the government would begin treating Chinese spouses in the same way as spouses from other countries.
But Wu said that Chinese spouses who failed the interviews were still able to petition for a review.
"In the case of rejected interviewees, they can file [with the office]. On average, we receive 200 to 300 petitions every month," Wu said.
As for the protest, Liu said that once his organization had collected 10,000 signatures, it would present the petition to the relevant authorities.
A tropical depression in waters east of the Philippines could develop into a tropical storm as soon as today and bring rainfall as it approaches, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, while issuing heat warnings for 14 cities and counties. Weather model simulations show that there are still considerable differences in the path that the tropical depression is projected to take. It might pass through the Bashi Channel to the South China Sea or turn northeast and move toward the sea south of Japan, CWA forecaster Yeh Chih-chun (葉致均) said, adding that the uncertainty of its movement is still high,
TAIWANESE INNOVATION: The ‘Seawool’ fabric generates about NT$200m a year, with the bulk of it sourced by clothing brands operating in Europe and the US Growing up on Taiwan’s west coast where mollusk farming is popular, Eddie Wang saw discarded oyster shells transformed from waste to function — a memory that inspired him to create a unique and environmentally friendly fabric called “Seawool.” Wang remembered that residents of his seaside hometown of Yunlin County used discarded oyster shells that littered the streets during the harvest as insulation for their homes. “They burned the shells and painted the residue on the walls. The houses then became warm in the winter and cool in the summer,” the 42-year-old said at his factory in Tainan. “So I was
THE TOUR: Pope Francis has gone on a 12-day visit to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore. He was also invited to Taiwan The government yesterday welcomed Pope Francis to the Asia-Pacific region and said it would continue extending an invitation for him to visit Taiwan. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs made the remarks as Pope Francis began a 12-day tour of the Asia-Pacific on Monday. He is to travel about 33,000km by air to visit Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore, and would arrive back in Rome on Friday next week. It would be the longest and most challenging trip of Francis’ 11-year papacy. The 87-year-old has had health issues over the past few years and now uses a wheelchair. The ministry said
Discounted 72-hour Taipei Metro passes are to be offered to China Airlines passengers until Feb. 28 next year, the airline announced today. China Airlines passengers may present their boarding pass for a discount of up to 34 percent when buying a Taipei Metro 72-hour unlimited travel pass. The offer is available to international travelers on international flights bound for Taipei. Within seven days of arrival, travelers can present their boarding pass, passport and proof of flight payment at an EZfly counter in Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport or Taoyuan MRT Taipei Main Station to obtain the discounted passes, the airline said. One 72-hour pass
RSS