All members of an incoming Chinese university tour group invited by former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) are affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), a government official said on Monday.
The tour group consists of students and faculty from seven of China’s top universities, including Olympic gold medalists Ma Long (馬龍) and Yang Qian (楊倩).
The group is to arrive in Taiwan today and is to stay for nine days, visiting National Chengchi University, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Chinese Culture University, National Taiwan University, National Tsing Hua University, the Hsinchu Science Park Exploration Hall, the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Museum of Innovation and other institutions.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
Young people are the future of cross-strait relations and exchanges between young people across the Taiwan Strait would build a solid foundation for the next generation, Ma Ying-jeou Foundation director Hsiao Hsu-tsen (蕭旭岑) said in a recent interview with Chinese state media.
“The true voice of Taiwan is against war and for peace, against Taiwanese independence and for cross-strait exchanges,” Hsiao said.
The foundation spent NT$5 million (US$153,799) to invite the group and all participating students are members of China’s Communist Youth League or affiliated with the CCP, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Ma Long and Yang are both CCP members, and their inclusion was a deliberate move to facilitate propaganda efforts, the official said.
The tour group is led by China’s Tsinghua University CCP committee secretary Qiu Yong (邱勇), while a CCP organizer has been assigned to each university’s group of students, they said.
All members of the group were specifically chosen by the CCP, they added.
That all members are affiliated with the CCP shows that this is not a normal exchange, but part of Beijing’s “united front” tactics, National Taiwan University political science professor Chen Shih-min (陳世民) said.
The students were not selected through an application process, but chosen by the CCP and a predeparture meeting would be held to instruct them on what to say in Taiwan, Chen said.
The inclusion of Olympic athletes is a deliberate effort by Beijing to showcase China’s prowess as a part of its “united front” efforts, he said.
As the political system in China is different from Taiwan, it is not surprising that the students are affiliated with the CCP, Hsiao said in a news release issued yesterday.
It is a disgrace to Taiwan that an official has leaked the personal information of tour group members, smearing the significance of this cross-strait exchange, he said.
The two Olympians would experience baseball in Taiwan, representing an exchange between champions, as Taiwan’s national team on Sunday won the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s Premier12 championship, he added.
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
RSS