More than 6,000 Taiwanese students have participated in exchange programs in China over the past two years, despite the Mainland Affairs Council’s (MAC) “orange light” travel advisory, government records showed.
The MAC’s publicly available registry showed that Taiwanese college and university students who went on exchange programs across the Strait numbered 3,592 and 2,966 people respectively.
The National Immigration Agency data revealed that 2,296 and 2,551 Chinese students visited Taiwan for study in the same two years.
Photo: Screen grab from the MAC’s Facebook page
A review of the Web sites of publicly-run universities and colleges showed that Taiwanese higher education institutions continued to recruit students for Chinese educational programs without posting government warnings of the dangers to Taiwanese nationals.
For example, National Chengchi University (NCCU) not only launched an all-university recruiting initiative to send students to China, but also offered scholarships and held three workshops with returning students to boost recruitment to the program.
The privately-owned Kainan University was more circumspect and its Web site did not neglect to include the council’s travel advisory and safety guidelines to warn students of running afoul of China’s national security laws.
In response, NCCU said its study abroad programs have always prioritized student safety and complied with government laws and regulations, and that students are briefed on safety tips and advisories before leaving.
The university emphasized that it sends 300 students to sister schools across the globe a year, far more than the 20 to 30 students who go to China.
The school’s administration continues to work with the government to enhance student safety without contravening the autonomy of students with regard to making decisions about their academic careers, it said.
When asked, an official speaking for the Ministry of Education said it has repeatedly warned universities and colleges about the dangers of sending students to China as part of a collaboration with the MAC.
The ministry has created an online platform for higher education institutions to regularly report on their academic exchange programs in China to mitigate the risks to national security, confidential research and student safety, they said.
Taiwanese educators are urged to keep their guard up when it comes to being invited to events that could be turned into propaganda or create an opening for the infiltration of Taiwan, they said.
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