MAC MINISTER SAYS NO LEGAL BASIS FOR CHINESE NATIONALS' ASYLUM|跳機陸客張向忠證實 將申請政治庇護

Chinese dissident Zhang Xiangzhong went missing in Taiwan shortly after arriving with a tour group on the 12th. In a telephone interview with PTS, Zhang said that he is currently in Taipei and collecting the documents needed to apply for political asylum. He also said that his travel visa is valid for only 15 days and that he will act before it expires. However, Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chang Hsiao-Yueh said at the legislature today that there was no legal basis for political asylum for Chinese nationals, only special long-term residency permits, and that the case will need further investigation. Chinese dissident Zhang Xiangzhong arrived in Taiwan with a tour group on the 12th, but went missing after leaving his hotel on the 13th. His disappearance has attracted attention on both sides of the strait, and he confirmed in a telephone interview with PTS on Apr. 17 that he is collecting the documents needed to apply for political asylum in Taiwan. ==ZHANG XIANGZHONG Chinese dissident== It is for certain that I will go to the Mainland Affairs Council, because we must act according to the law. In a new free China, the law is important. We need to apply the law to ourselves to build a country ruled by law. I did not go today, because there is still a lot of material I need to organize. But I'll certainly go in 15 days. Zhang said that he is currently staying in Taipei, and that he left China with only basic identification documents because he was afraid he would be stopped at the border if he brought any more. Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chang Hsiao-Yueh said that China has been notified of the situation, but that there is no legal basis for political asylum for Chinese nationals; Zhang's case will be considered a special request for long-term residency. ==CHANG HSIAO-YUEH Minister, Mainland Affairs Council== We need to understand the facts before we can deal with this situation. I will also need to tell you, that in the Act Governing Relations between Taiwan and the Mainland, there are no provisions for so-called political asylum. If people from Mainland China want to live in Taiwan because of their political stances, we call that a special long-term residence permit. The Zhang Xiangzhong affair comes on the heels of the detention of Taiwanese activist Lee Ming-cheh by the Chinese government, fueling speculation that an "exchange" will take place. However, Chang Hsiao-Yueh emphasizes that it is still too early to make any pronouncements before the facts are known. TRANSLATED BY：JOHN CHEN 中國異議人士張向忠，12號來台觀光，卻在隔天跳機失踪，張向忠今天接受本台電話訪問時表示，自己人在台北，正在準備資料，要向陸委會申請政治庇護，他的入台證效期只有15天，在期限內會做出行動。不過陸委會主委張小月今天在國會備詢時表示，依兩岸人民關係條例規定沒有政治庇護，只有專案長期居留，此案仍需再釐清。 在臉書上發表或轉發自由民主理念，中國大陸異議人士張向忠，12號來台觀光，13號跳機後行踪成謎，引起兩岸關注，而張向忠本人17號上午，接受本台電訪時也證實，正在收集相關資料，將向陸委會申請政治庇護。 == 中國異議人士張向忠== 陸委會肯定是要去的 因為我們必須要按照法律來走 新的一個自由中國的話 應該是還是一個法律 首先我們自己准用法律 才能建成一個有法的國家 今天沒有(去陸委會) 因為我們好多的材料 還沒有完全整理好 但在我這15天以內肯定會去的 張向忠表示，自己目前暫住台北，日前出境時，只帶了基本身份證件，若再攜帶其他文件，恐怕連海關也出不了，因此正在準備資料，在入台證效期15天內向陸委會申請。陸委會主委張小月則表示，已經向對岸通報此事，而且兩岸人民關係條例中，沒有政治庇護的規定，會以「專案長期居留」處理。 ==陸委會主委 張小月== 要釐清事實的狀況 才能夠做後續處理 在這裡 我也要跟委員報告 就是在兩岸的這個 人民關係條例裡面 並沒有所謂的政治庇護 那如果中國大陸 因為政治立場有不同的人 要在台灣的話 我們是用叫做專案長期居留 李明哲事件發生至今，現在又有張向忠案件，外界甚至引發"換囚說"，不過張小月強調一碼歸一碼，目前要先釐清真相，在真相未明朗前，一切言之過早，倒是張向忠脫團的行為，已經違反兩岸旅遊規定。 記者綜合報導