Taiwan furious, demands formal Philippine apology

TAIPEI – Taiwan expressed anger on Tuesday over the Philippines’ refusal to apologize for deporting 14 Taiwanese to China and threatened to freeze the hiring of Philippine workers.

“Taiwan’s government and people are strongly angered,” President Ma Ying-jeou said through an interpreter while meeting in Taipei with former Sen. Manuel Roxas II, the unofficial envoy of Philippine President Aquino.

Ma reiterated Taiwan’s demand that the Philippines “take responsibility for its mistakes” and apologize.

Roxas, who arrived on Monday in an attempt to cool the row, has so far only said “we deeply regret” this incident during talks with Ma and Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Timothy Yang, according to the foreign ministry.

His mission was, however, complicated by comments made in Manila by Aquino’s spokesman, who said the Philippines would not apologize for the incident, which saw the 14 suspected fraudsters deported to China against Taipei’s wishes.

Taiwan is mulling a freeze on the hiring of Filipino workers in retaliation, although a final decision is yet to be made, Labor Minister Wang Ju-hsuan told reporters earlier Tuesday.

A labor official told AFP that Taipei is “very likely” to impose the freeze after Ma expressed fury over the deportations.

China and Taiwan have been ruled separately since the end of a civil war in 1949, although Beijing claims the island. The Philippines maintains formal ties with China only but pursues economic and cultural links with Taiwan.

Taipei had already raised the screening period for Philippine workers to a maximum of four months.

There are about 70,000 Filipino workers in Taiwan, sending home hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

Aquino: No apology

President Aquino stood by the government’s decision not to apologize to Taiwan for deporting the 14 Taiwanese to Beijing for alleged large-scale fraud.

Aquino said he did give instructions to former senator Roxas that “we would have a problem with the apology” that was being demanded by Taipei so that it would lift the stringent requirements it imposed on overseas Filipino workers after the deportation row erupted.

Aquino appointed Roxas as emissary to Taiwan. Roxas went there in a private capacity because the Philippine government adheres to a one-China policy.

“Given the facts available at that time, the decisions I believe were sound and there were certain facts that were unearthed after the subject individuals were already deported,” Aquino told reporters at military headquarters in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City where he attended the unveiling of a mini-museum for the EDSA People Power revolution in 1986.

Aquino said he was in constant touch with Roxas since Monday but had yet to get a full report from him.

“There’s supposed to be a fact sheet on points that they agreed to synthesize the thoughts of both sides… I have yet to talk to him on the final outcome of their discussions,” Aquino said.

Roxas, who returned to the country yesterday, said that the Taiwanese officials were adamant about a Philippine apology.

“But we can’t do that,” he said.

Roxas disclosed his talks with the Taiwanese officials headed by Foreign Minister Timothy Yang started at 2 p.m. on Monday and ended at around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.

He again had discussions with the Taiwanese officials yesterday morning to “listen” as “we are doing everything for the welfare of our overseas Filipino workers.”

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said the Philippines is not apologizing because there was still an investigation going on.

“I wouldn’t be able to say anything for certain. As far as the Philippine development is concerned, there is still an investigation going on,” Lacierda said.

There is still a case going on so it would be too presumptuous for us to immediately apologize for something, which we don’t know if we have violated anything.  – Aurea Calica, Rudy Santos, AP