Taiwan-China interactions continue despite stalled talks: MAC head

Taipei, May 26 (CNA) Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) head Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said Monday that Taiwan and China still maintain some level of interaction, even though official dialogue has stalled.

Chiu said during a radio show that interactions with China are being carried out in line with the Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area.

Chiu made the comments after Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) Chairman Frank Wu (吳豊山) said during a May 21 legislative hearing that while "cross-strait dialogue is suspended, channels for passing messages remain open."

Chiu explained that Wu was simply stating the facts and expressing hope that both sides of the Taiwan Strait could resume dialogue, which was cut off in 2016.

Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) of the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party took office as Taiwan's president in her first term that year.

Chiu acknowledged that maintaining "normal dialogue" is currently difficult because Taiwan will never accept China's demand to treat the "1992 Consensus," based on the "One China principle," as a precondition -- since it effectively seeks to eliminate the Republic of China, Taiwan's official name.

Nevertheless, Chiu said some interaction continues between the MAC and China's Taiwan Affairs Office, as well as between the semi-official SEF and its Chinese counterpart, the Beijing-based Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS).

He was referring to the 3,179 messages the SEF sent to China in 2023 -- mostly concerning public petitions -- and the continued implementation of 26 cross-strait agreements.

Furthermore, individuals across the Strait, including Taiwanese businesspeople, scholars and journalists, frequently travel between the two sides and share information, Chiu said, adding that this was likely what Wu meant when he said the "channels for passing messages remain open."

During the radio interview, Chiu was also asked to comment on a recent incident in which a group of Chinese visitors posed for a selfie with a People's Republic of China (PRC) flag during their visit to Taiwan.

According to the minister, they were later identified as students studying in Macau.

The incident drew media attention after YouTuber Pa Chiung (八炯) posted a photo on the social media platform Threads showing five Chinese female students posing with a PRC flag in downtown Taipei.

According to multiple sources, the group was in Taiwan to attend a concert.

Calling the act of displaying the flag "provocative," Chiu said the students engaged in activities that violated the stated purpose of their visit, which was tourism.

Taiwan welcomes tourists from around the world and supports attendance at events, Chiu said, but incidents like this should not happen.

He said authorities have issued a warning, and future entry applications from the group will face stricter review.

"They clearly knew this kind of behavior would stir resentment in Taiwanese society, but still challenged the law by saying 'come and catch me,'" Chiu said. "That's just inappropriate."