A 66-member delegation of Chinese tourism leaders from both the government and business sectors has won approval for a 10-day visit starting next Friday, Mainland Affairs Council Vice Chairman Johnnason Liu (劉德勳) said yesterday.
"The government approved their application since the purpose of their trip is very simple -- to look into the local market in preparation for the lifting of restrictions on Chinese tourism," Liu said at a council press conference.
Liu said that the delegation led by Shao Qiwei (邵琪偉), director of China's National Tourism Administration (NTA), will tour major scenic spots and review transportation and accommodation capabilities.
Since it is an informal convention that the Chinese government send such delegations to the countries before listing them as approved destinations for Chinese tourists, the group's visit is seen as step toward the opening of Taiwan to Chinese tourists.
While welcoming the delegation, Liu said that the trip had nothing to do with cross-strait negotiations on the opening of Taiwan to Chinese tourists.
Since the government has officially authorized the Travel Agency Association of ROC Taiwan (TAA), a private organization, to arrange cross-strait negotiations on this issue, Liu said that the arrangement for such talks should be handled by the TAA.
In related news, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator John Chiang (蔣孝嚴), who visited China earlier this week to promote tourism in Taiwan, passed a message from Chinese authorities to Liu during a hearing at the legislature yesterday.
"China has lifted its restrictions on its people to tour Taiwan," he said.
He said the problem was that the government was reluctant to open Taiwan's doors.
Liu, however, said the problem is China, since it hadn't -- as of Sept. 15 -- listed Taiwan as an approved country for tourism, according to NTA's Web site.
Meanwhile, in response to the KMT's request to invite the head of China's Taiwan Affairs Office, Chen (
Liu's comment came in response to remarks by the director of the KMT's mainland affairs department, Chang Jung-kung (張榮恭). Chang told the media yesterday that the KMT-affiliated National Policy Foundation would help Chen Yunlin file his visa application.
"We will invite Chen and 50 other Chinese officials to Taiwan to attend a forum on cross-strait economic cooperation in December," Chang said.
The Chinese Communist Party and the KMT have agreed to build a platform for party-to-party communication to promote cross-strait exchanges in economic, trade and cultural sectors, following former KMT chairman Lien Chan's (
Chen had expressed his willingness to accept the KMT's invitation to visit Taiwan, according to a Central News Agency report.
Liu said the government would need to carefully consider Chen's application if one is made as he would become the highest-ranking Chinese official to visit Taiwan.
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