Taiwan on the Wane: Bai Hsui-hsiung

Bai Hsui-hsiung, deputy mayor of Taipei, led his delegation back to Taipei on Monday after a visiting tour on the mainland.

Bai Hsui-hsiung expressed deep impression of his visit before leaving for Taiwan. He cited economic successes achieved in the cities like Shanghai and Nanjing and candidly admitted that Taiwan's investment environment is assuredly inferior to that of the mainland. No wonder so many businessmen and enterprises have left Taiwan for the mainland. He advocated strengthening inter-city exchanges between Taiwan and the mainland and agreed that the Taiwan authorities should relax its policy restrictions on Taiwan-mainland ties.

Bai Hsui-hsiung visited a good many of industrial parks, new-emerging commercial and industrial centers, developing areas and Taiwan businessmen's enclaves in Shanghai, Nanjing, Kunshan and Suzhou, etc. He spoke highly of the flexible measures and extensive preferential policies for luring external investment in these areas.

Realizing the economic successes achieved by several large cities on the mainland, Bai said, he found out that the environment for investment in Taiwan is in no way in a better situation. It is understandable why more and more entrepreneurs have left Taiwan for the mainland for investment and the demand for schooling for children of Taiwan businessmen on the mainland has been raised.

Speaking about inter-cities exchanges between Taipei and Shanghai, Bai voiced his complete satisfaction, adding that both sides have shown high goodwill. He will report all he have seen to Mayor Ma Ying-jeou and will suggest Ma to ask the authorities to relax restrictions unnecessarily imposed by local laws in Taiwan.

As is known from sources released, Taipei and Shanghai have promised to hold their third "Taipei-Shanghai Forum" in Taipei next spring.



By PD Online Staff Member Du Minghua


People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/