The Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed “serious dissatisfaction” that Taiwan was not invited to the annual International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) General Assembly, which opened in New Delhi yesterday.
“We find it deeply regrettable that Interpol has allowed political factors to override policing expertise by disregarding Taiwan’s practical needs to meaningfully participate in the organization’s meetings,” ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) told a news briefing.
The Republic of China (ROC) is a sovereign, independent democratic state and is not subordinate to the autocratic People’s Republic of China (PRC), Ou said, using Taiwan’s official name.
Photo: AFP
Only the democratically elected government of Taiwan has the right to represent Taiwanese on the international stage, she said.
Interpol Secretary-General Jurgen Stock on Monday said that Interpol cannot grant observer status to Taiwan because it sees Taiwan as part of the PRC.
“In 1984, the Interpol General Assembly recognized the People’s Republic of China as the sole representation of China,” Stock told a press event.
“As such, Interpol recognizes Taiwan is part of China, and as China is a member of Interpol, Interpol cannot grant Taiwan observer status in the general assembly,” he said.
“Arrangements were put in place” after 1984 to enable Interpol National Central Bureaus and the “China-Taiwan police administration” to exchange information through “Interpol channels,” he said, without elaborating.
Ou yesterday said that Taiwan’s police system has always operated independently and smoothly outside that of the PRC.
“As an important member of the international police community, Taiwan is highly willing to contribute to cross-border crime fighting, but cannot establish direct and real-time information sharing with Interpol simply due to China’s obstruction,” she said.
Taiwan would continue to ask its diplomatic allies and like-minded countries to support its bid to join Interpol, to ensure that no gaps exist in the global fight against cross-border crime, Ou said.
The 90th Interpol General Assembly is taking place in New Delhi until Friday, featuring chiefs of police and senior officials from its 195 members around the world to address global security issues.
The ROC joined Interpol in 1961, but was forced to withdraw in 1984 after the entry of the PRC. Its participation was blocked under a resolution passed at the 53rd Interpol General Assembly the same year.
Taiwan has sought to take part in the general assembly as an observer since 2016, but repeated attempts to secure an invitation have failed.
ANOTHER EMERGES: The CWA yesterday said this year’s fourth storm of the typhoon season had formed in the South China Sea, but was not expected to affect Taiwan Tropical Storm Gaemi has intensified slightly as it heads toward Taiwan, where it is expected to affect the country in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 8am yesterday, the 120km-radius storm was 800km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving at 9kph northwest, the agency said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued tonight at the earliest, it said, adding that the storm is projected to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday. Gaemi’s potential effect on Taiwan remains unclear, as that would depend on its direction, radius and intensity, forecasters said. Former Weather Forecast
As COVID-19 cases in Japan have been increasing for 10 consecutive weeks, people should get vaccinated before visiting the nation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said. The centers reported 773 hospitalizations and 124 deaths related to COVID-19 in Taiwan last week. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) on Tuesday said the number of weekly COVID-19 cases reported in Japan has been increasing since mid-May and surpassed 55,000 cases from July 8 to July 14. The average number of COVID-19 patients at Japan’s healthcare facilities that week was also 1.39 times that of the week before and KP.3 is the dominant
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) working group for Taiwan-related policies is likely to be upgraded to a committee-level body, a report commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said. As Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is increasingly likely to upgrade the CCP’s Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs, Taiwanese authorities should prepare by researching Xi and the CCP, the report said. At the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the CCP, which ended on Thursday last week, the party set a target of 2029 for the completion of some tasks, meaning that Xi is likely preparing to
US-CHINA TRADE DISPUTE: Despite Beijing’s offer of preferential treatment, the lure of China has dimmed as Taiwanese and international investors move out Japan and the US have become the favored destinations for Taiwanese graduates as China’s attraction has waned over the years, the Ministry of Labor said. According to the ministry’s latest income and employment advisory published this month, 3,215 Taiwanese university graduates from the class of 2020 went to Japan, surpassing for the first time the 2,881 graduates who went to China. A total of 2,300 graduates from the class of 2021 went to the US, compared with the 2,262 who went to China, the document showed. The trend continued for the class of 2023, of whom 1,460 went to Japan, 1,334 went to