Ma gets green light to host Chinese students in Taiwan
Former President Ma Ying-jeou has gotten the green light to host Chinese students in Taiwan this month. A committee of immigration, education, and Chinese affairs officials approved Ma’s proposal earlier this week. But one day after approval, Ma’s office sent a request to invite three more people – faculty members of Peking University. Government sources say the request is unlikely to be approved. When asked about the matter, Ma’s office said it had not received a response from the government, and could not understand why the request would be denied.
Former President Ma Ying-jeou plans to host Chinese students in Taiwan this month. But after his exchange program was approved by Taiwan’s government, his office tried to invite three more people. The request has reportedly been denied by the Ministry of Education.
According to Ma’s initial application, the exchange will last from July 15 to 23, and will be for students and faculty from five Chinese universities. The application was reviewed by a committee comprising the National Immigration Agency, education ministry, and Mainland Affairs Council, which gave the green light on July 11. But on July 12, Ma’s office filed additional paperwork, requesting the inclusion of three faculty members. They are Li Yun, director of Office of Hong Kong, Macao & Taiwan Affairs at Peking University; office deputy director Zhou Jing, and one associate researcher. According to a government source, the review committee will not accept additional requests at this point, so it’s unlikely that the three faculty will be approved.
Voice of Hsiao Hsu-tsen
Ma Ying-jeou Foundation director
I haven’t received a response yet, so they’re choosing to communicate their decision through a leak. They should stop resorting to this anti-Chinese, Red Scare method of communication.
Most of the visiting students are members of the Communist Youth League. It’s rumored that China wished to send three additional faculty to monitor the students’ activities in Taiwan.
Voice of Hsiao Hsu-tsen
Ma Ying-jeou Foundation director
I think what happened is, the Tsai administration had initially said it would not approve our application. But now that the application is approved, the party we’re working with in China is feeling cautious, and it hopes to add three staff members. This request should be handled separately from our initial application. Taiwan’s government should not deny the request by pointing to precedent.
Sources say the group will be led by Hao Ping, secretary-general of Peking University’s Communist Party committee. The 37 visitors hail from five schools including Peking and Tsinghua universities. They will spend nine days in Taiwan, with stops at National Taiwan University and National Chengchi University. They’ll also visit popular attractions including Sun Moon Lake, Dadaocheng, Taroko, and Jiufen.
Although it looks like a standard cross-strait exchange, it falls at a sensitive time given the upcoming elections.
2023-07-13
