Taiwan has been elevated from the observer status it has held for 20 years to become a formal non-regional member of the Ibero-American Federation of Ombudsman (FIO), the Control Yuan said on Monday, hailing the change as a milestone.
In September, the Control Yuan hosted the FIO president, Paraguayan ombudsman Rafael Avila, and in a meeting with Control Yuan President Chen Chu (陳菊) they agreed to promote cooperation between Taiwan and FIO member countries as well as developments in domestic monitoring system, the Control Yuan said in a news release.
Last week, Control Yuan member Lin Wen-cheng (林文程) attended the 28th annual FIO meeting in Paraguay, it said.
Photo courtesy of the Control Yuan
At the meeting — which was focused on environmental protection, climate change and indigenous peoples’ rights — Lin exchanged ideas with representatives from member countries and expressed Taiwan’s desire for closer collaboration with them.
After the signing of a cooperation agreement, the Control Yuan became a formal non-regional member of the group, with FIO members welcoming Taiwan’s supervisory and auditory body at the conference, the news release said.
The milestone reflected international recognition of the Control Yuan’s dedication to protecting human rights and highlighted Taiwan’s strong historical ties to the region, especially Paraguay, it said.
In other news, the International Practical Shooting Confederation, under pressure from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), is forcing the Taiwan Practical Shooting Association (TPSA) to compete under the name “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” starting next year, the association wrote on Facebook yesterday.
The confederation also told the TPSA it can no longer display the Republic of China national flag at competitions and must instead use the Chinese Taipei Olympic flag, it said.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Jeff Liu (劉永健) said that the ministry would investigate the situation with the Sports Administration.
Sports should be free from political interference, he said, adding that China’s meddling in Taiwan’s ability to participate in sporting events would only further damage cross-strait relations.
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