The Taiwan Statebuilding Party yesterday alleged that a visit planned by the Matsu Temple in Meizhou Township in China’s Fujian Province for November is an attempt by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to use religion as part of its “united front” tactics.
The party urged national security agencies to thoroughly vet those visiting to prevent Chinese spies from entering Taiwan.
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) spokeswoman Zhu Fenglian (朱鳳蓮) said that multiple groups, including the Taiwan Matsu Fellowship, had signed a petition requesting that the Meizhou Matsu tour Taiwan.
Photo: Yang Chin-cheng, Taipei Times
The Meizhou temple had been quick to respond and arranged to visit from Nov. 3 to 13, she said.
Matsu is a deity revered by people on both sides of the Strait, and the Meizhou Matsu is no stranger to Taiwan, having previously visited to great fanfare, Zhu said.
The TAO is “happy to see the Meizhou Matsu tour Taiwan and bless our Taiwanese compatriots with her grace,” Zhu said.
Taiwan Statebuilding Party Chairman Wang Hsing-huan (王興煥) said that trade, commerce, religion, education, culture and tourism are all means used by China to spread its “united front” rhetoric.
Anyone who denies this is either working with China or is completely ignorant of China, he said.
Wang said The Economist had reported that China was attempting to infiltrate Taiwan via connections in religious circles.
The Taiwan Matsu Fellowship and the Taiwan First Matsu Fellowship, representing Jenn Lann Temple (鎮瀾宮) in Taichung’s Dajia District (大甲) and Gongfan Temple (拱範宮) in Yunlin County’s Mailiao Township (麥寮) respectively, had previously invited the Meizhou Matsu to Taiwan, Wang said, adding that high-ranking representatives of both fellowships had also met with TAO Director Song Tao (宋濤).
Wang called on the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) to base its review of the Meizhou group on whether any are mouthpieces for China’s “united front” tactics and asked national security agencies to prevent questionable parties from entering Taiwan.
Taiwan Statebuilding Party spokeswoman Yang Pei-hua (楊佩樺) said that China is using the event as a platform for its “united front” rhetoric, even saying that Matsu is like a mother to Taiwanese.
The Matsu Temple has sent out invites to Taiwanese temples and followers asking them to attend events in Fujian, she said, adding that Chinese media are reporting that Taiwan’s religious groups are answering the invitations.
National security agencies must be on guard regarding the November visit, she said.
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