Several overseas Taiwanese groups on Wednesday called for changing the English-language title on the nation’s passport to “Taiwan,” while World United Formosans for Independence (WUFI) in Taiwan urged the government to promote the name change at a time when the nation is drawing unprecedented attention worldwide for its efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a joint statement titled “Let Taiwan Passport Be Taiwan,” 46 Taiwanese organizations in North and South America, Europe, Asia and Oceania said they are all familiar with stories of confusion at foreign immigration desks when Taiwanese present a passport that says “Republic of China” on the cover.
Although the word “Taiwan” also appears on the passport cover, foreign immigration authorities often mistake it for a Chinese passport, the groups said.
A constitutional amendment to change Taiwan’s official name — the Republic of China (ROC) — might not be possible in the near term, while but there is broad public support for the use of the English designation “Taiwan,” the organizations said, citing a poll that showed 74.3 percent of Taiwanese support that name.
Ken Wu (吳兆峯), director of the Los Angeles branch of the Formosan Association for Public Affairs, said that he had met many people who did not know “the difference between the ROC and the PRC [People’s Republic of China]” in his work in the financial field.
In some cases, Taiwanese clients are misidentified as Chinese, which can have significant legal repercussions, said Wu, whose organization is among those that signed the statement.
He said that while a name change on passports was unlikely, the government should make an effort, particularly in light of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) long-term goal of promoting the use of the name “Taiwan” internationally.
The “Let Taiwan Passport Be Taiwan” statement followed an online petition launched by an overseas Taiwanese group to change the name of Taiwan’s flagship carrier, China Airlines (CAL), to “Taiwan Airlines.”
Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) on Tuesday expressed support for changing CAL’s name, but said it might not be easy as it could affect the nation’s freedoms of the air privileges.
CAL could use “more symbols of Taiwan” to prevent misconceptions about its origin, Su said.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday endorsed Su’s stance, saying the government would increase the recognizability of things representing Taiwan and that members of the public have shown their creativity in suggesting potential alternatives.
Meanwhile, WUFI urged the Tsai administration to make more progress in promoting the nation’s name change at this critical juncture.
Taiwan has received unprecedented attention from other countries because of its effective response to contain COVID-19, which is a good opportunity for Taiwan to assert its sovereignty and rights to join international organizations, it said in a news release yesterday.
It would not push Tsai to complete the name change process immediately, but Tsai should show her committment to the nearly 8.17 million people who voted for her in the Jan. 11 presidential election, it said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the
Speeding and badly maintained roads were the main causes of a school bus accident on a rainy day in Taipei last year that severely injured two people and left 22 with minor injuries, the Taiwan Transportation and Safety Board said. On March 11 last year, a Kang Chiao International School bus overturned inside the Wenshan Tunnel (文山隧道) on the northbound lane of the Xinyi Expressway. The tour bus, owned by Long Lai Co, exceeded the speed limit after entering the tunnel, the board’s investigation found. Sensing that the rear of the vehicle was swaying, the driver attempted to use the service and exhaust
Central and southern Taiwan are to see increasingly heavy rainfall from last night through Friday due to the effects of a low-pressure system and southwesterly winds, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said Tropical Storm Co-May had weakened into a low-pressure system on Saturday, but that it strengthened again into a tropical depression (TD 11) near the seas around Japan's Ryukyu Islands due to favorable environmental conditions. The tropical depression is expected to persist for two to three days, moving west-northwest by this afternoon and reaching China's Zhejiang through the East China Sea tomorrow,
RSS