Diplomatic mission
The
Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Hong Kong
(
TECO
) is the
representative office
of the
Republic of China (Taiwan)
in
Hong Kong
.
[1]
Its counterpart body in
Taiwan
is the
Hong Kong Economic, Trade and Cultural Office
in Taiwan.
The de facto diplomatic mission is placed administratively under the
Mainland Affairs Council
,
Executive Yuan
, but it also houses departments that serve as outposts of the
National Immigration Agency
and the
Bureau of Consular Affairs
(
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
).
[2]
[3]
Its cultural arm, known as Kwang Hwa Information and Culture Centre, is an overseas agency of the
Ministry of Culture
.
[4]
The General Manager of TECO is also the Director of the Bureau of Hong Kong Affairs in the
Mainland Affairs Council
of the
Executive Yuan
. The founding director of the office was
Susie Chiang Su-hui
.
[5]
Previously located at Tower 1,
Lippo Centre
in
Admiralty
, the office has been relocated to
Central Plaza
in
Wan Chai
since December 2021.
[6]
History
[
edit
]
The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Hong Kong, initially known as
Chung Hwa Travel Service
(
Chinese
:
中華旅行社
), was first established in Hong Kong in 1966 during
British rule
.
[7]
This operated under quasi-diplomatic arrangements unilaterally extended by the British authorities.
[8]
Previously, while the
National Government
of the
Republic of China
in
Nanjing
had negotiated with the British regarding the appointment of a Consul-General in 1945, it decided against such an appointment, with its representative in the colony, T W Kwok (Kuo Teh-hua) instead being styled
Special Commissioner for Hong Kong
.
[9]
This was in addition to his role as Special Commissioner for
Guangdong
and
Guangxi
.
[10]
Disagreements also arose with the British authorities, with the
Governor
,
Alexander Grantham
, opposing an office building for the "Commissioner for Foreign Affairs of the Provinces of Kwantung and Kuangsi" being erected on the site of the
Walled City
in
Kowloon
.
[11]
In 1950, following British recognition of the
People's Republic of China
, the office of the Special Commissioner was closed and Kwok withdrawn.
[12]
Following the
transfer of sovereignty
to the
People's Republic of China
in 1997, the Service continued to operate, despite not having been officially registered with the
Hong Kong SAR Government
.
[8]
However, in 2000,
Beijing
set out the conditions under which the Chung Hwa Travel Service could operate in Hong Kong, although the
Mainland Affairs Council
refused to detail them.
[13]
In 2004, the newly appointed managing director of the Service faced a five-month delay before received approval to enter Hong Kong and assume his post.
[14]
Similarly, other Taiwan government officials faced difficulties in obtaining visas to visit Hong Kong.
[15]
In 2009, the Service opened a visa office at
Hong Kong International Airport
, thereby allowing mainland visitors to Taiwan to collect their visas at the airport instead of having to travel to the office in
Admiralty
.
[16]
On 20 July 2011, in a ceremony presided over by
Mainland Affairs Council
Chairwoman Lai Shin-yuan, it was renamed the
Taipei Economic and Cultural Office
.
[17]
This brought it into line with most other
representative offices
around the world, which already had "Taipei" in their titles.
[18]
The renaming was considered a milestone in the improved
cross-strait relations
between
Taipei
and
Beijing
.
[17]
On 20 June 2021, Taiwan recalled its staff working at the office after the Government of Hong Kong demanded them to sign a document supporting the 1992 Consensus. Only local staff remained to maintain operations.
[19]
On 20 December 2021, the entire office completed relocation from
Lippo Centre
in
Admiralty
to the
Central Plaza
in
Wan Chai
.
[20]
Transportation
[
edit
]
The office is accessible within walking distance north from
Wan Chai Station
of the
Hong Kong MTR
.
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Is name change a game changer?
,
Taipei Times
, July 17, 2011
- ^
A01050000A, 內政部移民署.
"亞洲"
.
內政部移民署 A01050000A
(in Chinese (Taiwan))
. Retrieved
29 December
2021
.
{{
cite web
}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (
link
)
- ^
外交部領事事務局 (31 July 2017).
"Bureau of Consular Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of China(Taiwan)"
.
外交部領事事務局
. Retrieved
29 December
2021
.
- ^
"Overseas Offices, Ministry of Culture"
.
The Ministry of Culture, Republic of China (Taiwan)
. Retrieved
29 December
2021
.
- ^
Different era and mood for 'little dragons' talks
,
South China Morning Post
, 20 April 2010
- ^
"Bureau of Consular Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs ? Hong Kong"
. Boca.gov.tw. 14 July 2010
. Retrieved
9 June
2014
.
- ^
"Kuomintang News Network"
. Kmt.org.tw. 5 July 2011
. Retrieved
9 June
2014
.
- ^
a
b
The First Decade: The Hong Kong SAR in Retrospective and Introspective Perspectives
, Yue-man Yeung, Chinese University Press, 2007, page 87
- ^
Democracy shelved: Great Britain, China, and attempts at constitutional reform in Hong Kong, 1945?1952
, Steve Yui-Sang Tsang, Oxford University Press, Incorporated, 1988, page 28
- ^
Hegemonies Compared: State Formation and Chinese School Politics in Postwar Singapore and Hong Kong
, Ting-Hong Wong, Psychology Press, 2002, page 96
- ^
Britain and China 1945?1950: Documents on British Policy Overseas, Series I, Volume 8
, S.R. Ashton, G. Bennett, K. Hamilton, Routledge, 2013 page 129
- ^
Via Ports: From Hong Kong to Hong Kong
, Alexander Grantham, Hong Kong University Press, 2012, page 106
- ^
Beijing 'sets envoy terms'
,
South China Morning Post
, 8 March 2000
- ^
Taiwan's office head gets visa after five-month wait
,
South China Morning Post
, 8 October 2004
- ^
Visas hard for Taiwanese officials to get, says envoy
,
South China Morning Post
, 13 February 2008
- ^
Chung Hwa Travel opens visa office at HK airport
,
Travel Weekly Asia
, August 11, 2009
- ^
a
b
"Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council Chairwoman Lai Shin-yuan poses at a renaming ceremony in Hong Kong Photo 07/20/2011"
. Townhall.com. 20 July 2011
. Retrieved
9 June
2014
.
- ^
Foreign Policy of the New Taiwan: Pragmatic Diplomacy in Southeast Asia
, Jie Chen, Edward Elgar Publishing, 2002, page 82
- ^
Lee, Yimou (20 June 2021).
"Taiwanese staff to leave Hong Kong office in 'one China' row"
.
Reuters
. Reuters
. Retrieved
22 June
2021
.
- ^
"Taiwan office in Hong Kong to relocate to Wan Chai area"
.
Focus Taiwan
. 13 December 2021
. Retrieved
14 December
2021
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
Africa
| |
---|
Americas
| |
---|
Asia
| |
---|
Europe
| |
---|
Oceania
| |
---|
International Organizations
| |
---|
Former
| |
---|
|
---|
Asia and Pacific
| |
---|
Europe
| |
---|
America
| |
---|
Former
| |
---|
1
Consuls general that report directly to their respective
foreign ministries
instead of their respective Beijing Embassy
|
|
---|
|
Diplomatic posts
| |
---|
Diplomacy
| |
---|
Conflicts
| |
---|
Incidents
| |
---|
Legislation
| |
---|
Organizations
| |
---|
Concepts
| |
---|
Related
| |
---|
|