Chinese student group arrives in Taiwan for 9-day visit

Taipei, Nov. 27 (CNA) A group of 40 Chinese college students and faculty members arrived in Taiwan on Wednesday for a nine-day trip at the invitation of a foundation established by former President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).

Hsiao Hsu-tsen (蕭旭岑), CEO of the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, called the visit an exciting event at a time when the cross-Taiwan Strait relationship faces challenges.

Hsiao said that no matter how dire the cross-strait situation, youth exchanges, such as those that took place more frequently during Ma's presidency from 2008-2016, establish a common dialogue between the two sides and can help improve relations.

Thanking the government for greenlighting the visit, Hsiao said that during its stay in Taiwan, the group will visit six universities and the Taichung International Baseball Stadium where the foundation plans to give them "a taste of Taiwan's baseball culture."

"We would rather play baseball than go to war," he said, stressing that cross-strait youth exchanges must continue.

The group visited Taipei Municipal Zhong Shan Girls High School on Wednesday afternoon.

Participating in the visit are individuals from seven elite Chinese universities, including six-time Olympic table tennis champion Ma Long (馬龍) of Beijing Sport University, and 2020 Tokyo Olympic shooting gold medalist Yang Qian (楊倩) of Tsinghua University.

In response to ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen's (沈伯洋) claims that all the group members are affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and could engage in propaganda campaigns across Taiwan, Hsiao said it was sad to hear such comments.

"Do we not have enough confidence? Are we so afraid of united front tactics?" he said, urging DPP political figures not to boycott exchanges between Taiwanese and Chinese youth.

Hsiao added the DPP should be more open-minded to cross-strait interaction as this is the best way to safeguard Taiwan.

Ma Long, who is visiting Taiwan for the first time, said he is looking forward to trying local food and drink and visiting different places.

Eric Chu (朱立倫), chairman of the main opposition Kuomintang (KMT), issued a statement urging the DPP to stop attempting to block cross-strait exchanges. He also called on the administration to investigate who leaked the personal details of the visitors.

Local media, citing officials, have reported that all the Chinese visitors are members of China's Communist Youth League or affiliated with the CCP and were picked by the CCP to spread political propaganda.

Chu said that it is hardly surprising for Chinese students to be CCP members, adding he believes visits by Chinese students will help strengthen cross-strait relations and promote youth exchanges.