Visa-free sa Taiwan ipinagpaliban

MANILA, Philippines — Hindi na muna ipatutupad ng Taiwan ang visa-free sa mga Pilipino na dapat sana ay magsisimula sa Hunyo.

Sinabi ng Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) na kinakailangan muna magkaroon ng “complete relevant administrative procedures and inter-agency coordination.”

Anila inaasahang ihahayag ng Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) ng Taiwan ang pagtutuloy nito sa Setyembre.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of the Republic of China (Taiwan) has recently announced that the implementation of visa-free entry to the ROC (Taiwan) for Filipinos has been postponed in order to complete relevant administrative procedures and inter-agency coordination,” pahayag ng TECO.

Nilinaw naman ng kinatawan ng Taiwan sa Pilipinas na nananatiling prioridad nila ang Pilipinas ngunit nais nilang maplantsa muna ang operasyon kabilang ang pagdaan sa immigration.

“[T]he Philippines is considered as an important partner of Taiwan, so we are really making efforts to welcome more Filipino visitors to visit Taiwan, and the postponement of the visa-free arrangements is only intended to conduct seamless operations, facilitate the entry to Taiwan, and enhance security and safety for everyone,” sabi ni Lin.

Sa tala ng Taiwan ay lumobo ng 42.8 percent ang bilang ng kanilang mga turista, ang pinakamalaki sa nakaraang apat na taon.