191 PANAMA STUDENTS IN TAIWAN, 12 TAIWANESE IN PANAMA|191巴拿馬學生在台求學 得知斷交"錯愕"

Diplomatic ties have been cut between Taiwan and Panama, and the fate of 59 Panamanian students currently on diplomatic scholarships in Taiwan remains unclear. In past cases, when ties were severed, students were either allowed to stay, paying for their own expenses out of pocket, or had to go home. We were able to talk to one Panamanian student, and he says he would very much like to stay. Writing "I love Taiwan" in Chinese characters is a piece of cake for the Panamanian student we met near a university campus. He told us he started learning Chinese as a kid and came to study in Taiwan three years ago. So far, he has liked it here and found himself very much in tune with local life, but the news that Panama broke off diplomatic ties with Taiwan has left him thunderstruck. ==PANAMANIAN STUDENT IN TAIWAN== I have been learning Chinese since I was a kid. I was heartbroken when I heard the news. If your government allows me to stay, I would very much like to continue my studies in Taiwan. Government statistics show the number of Panamanian students studying in Taiwan at 191. 59 of them are on scholarships provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Concurrently, 12 Taiwanese are currently in Panama on Panamanian scholarships. ==LIU KUO-WEI Vice President, Ming Chuan University== In some cases, students were allowed to stay if they pay out-of-pocket, but in other cases, they just left. For now, we can only advise them to at least finish this semester, because what happens next is beyond our control. ==LAN HSIEN-CHIEN Deputy Director of International Education, MOE== Panama was an ally, and scholarship programs for ally countries are overseen by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Whether scholarships for Panamanian students will continue or not is entirely up to the Foreign Ministry, but we will make sure that help is extended to students who choose to stay. When asked whether Panamanian students will be forced to leave Taiwan, the Ministry of Education says that those not on scholarships won't be affected. But for those who are, their fate beyond this semester is largely contingent on how the two countries choose to handle the fallout. TRANSLATED BY：JEFF CHANG