Safety concerns as China pushes Taiwan out of ICAO / 沈啟:無法參加ICAO 恐出現飛安疑慮
The 39th Triennial Assembly of the International Civil Aviation Organization will take place at the end of the month. However, Taiwan was not invited. China's Taiwan Affairs Office said on Sep. 23 that the DPP administration is to blame for this. Former Civil Aeronautics Administration director-general Jean Shen was invited to the ICAO assembly as a guest 3 years ago. She said that there might be flight safety concerns if Taiwan is unable to participate. Taiwan was denied participation in the ICAO assembly that will be held at the end of the month in Canada. China's Taiwan Affairs Office spokesperson Ma Xiao-guang stated that the DPP is at fault for the breakdown of cross-strait communication and the exclusion of Taiwan in the ICAO assembly because they have refused to recognize the 1992 Consensus. ==MA XIAO-GUANG Spokesperson, PRC Taiwan Affairs Office== The ICAO is a UN body. As such, only sovereign states are allowed to participate in its activities. Of course, that means Taiwan is not entitled to attend its meetings. However, Taiwan may be faced with flight safety concerns if it is unable to participate in the ICAO assembly. ==JEAN SHEN, Former CAA director-general== Many aviation safety issues will be discussed in the assembly. If you're not a member, you will not be able to attend chief meetings or even technical seminars. That means the CAA won't have access to a lot of information. Jean Shen recalled the last ICAO assembly she attended 3 years ago. A range of issues were discussed, including flight safety, security, and transportation. Taiwan may suffer consequences if it is denied attendance. Many issues, such as differences in aviation terminology or runway lights standards can cause Taiwan to be questioned in case of aviation incidents. Also, Taiwan may be out of the loop when routes are renamed or modified, which may pose a threat to national security or flight safety. ==JEAN SHEN, Former CAA director-general== There are nearly 200 countries in the world, and each country has its own standards. It's not possible to have a set of standards that applies to all countries. That's why ICAO rules can sound vague, and it's hard to operate when the rules are vague. Shen remarked that attending the ICAO assembly can help ensure the flight safety of civil aviation in Taiwan. In the past, the CAA had to obtain information through indirect channels. The Taipei flight information region is the hub of western Pacific aviation routes and provided flight control services for over 1.5 million flights, or over 58 million passengers in the last year alone. Aviation safety is a major issue which the new administration will need to address properly. TRANSLATED BY：CHRISTINA LIU 國際民航組織(ICAO)三年一次的大會，月底就要舉行，今年我們沒受到邀請，中國國台辦昨天表示，這是民進黨政府所造成的後果。三年前曾經以''貴賓''身分獲邀列席ICAO大會的前民航局、局長沈啟認為，我國若無法參加ICAO，恐怕會有飛安疑慮。 今年我國無法前往加拿大參加月底的國際民航組織(ICAO) 大會，中國國台辦發言人馬曉光表示，民進黨當局至今不承認九二共識，導致兩岸聯繫溝通機制停擺，台灣方面不能與會，完全是民進黨當局造成的，回應語氣很是強烈。 ==中國國台辦發言人 馬曉光== 國際民航組織它本身 做為聯合國的專門機構 也是只能有主權國家才能參與 和參與它的相關活動 台灣當然是沒有權利 參加這樣的活動 但無法參與ICAO對我國而言，未來航空管理恐怕會出現飛安疑慮。 ==民航局前局長 沈啟== 這樣的大會當然 除了飛航安全的議題 那真正因為你沒有辦法是會員 不能參加後面的局長區域會議 比如說是技術研討會 全部都不能去 這是是對我們民航局來講 是比較很多事情(無法得知) 沈啟回憶起三年前，她率團列席ICAO大會，討論的議題繁多，包括航空安全、保安、運輸等，我國若被排除在外，影響實在不小，像ICAO使用的飛行術語不同，跑道閃光燈標準不同，一旦出現飛安事故，我方會被質疑，還有路線被更名，也在狀況外，連中央山脈上方被劃入航路計劃書等，都可能危及國防或飛安。 ==民航局前局長 沈啟== 全世界快200個國家來遵照 每一個國家的水準都差很多 所以有時候的標準 是沒有辦法一體適用 它就是寫得很模糊 這個模糊的地方 我們在做的時候 就會非常辛苦 沈啟認為，要參加ICAO大會，才能保障台灣民航的飛行安全，往年民航局的同仁，為了打探飛安資訊，還必須利用間接管道問取，而台北飛航情報區，位居西太平洋空中航路樞紐，去年提供約153萬架次飛航管制服務，旅客超過5800萬人，飛安不是政治議題，但卻是新政府必須突破的問題。 記者 郭采彥 陳立峰 台北報導
