DPP 'responsible' for hindered cross-Strait tourism: spokesman

A Chinese mainland spokesman said on Wednesday that the Democratic Progressive Party authorities in Taiwan are entirely responsible for the fact that cross-Strait tourism cannot be fully restored.

Chen Binhua, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said that residents of Taiwan have a strong interest in traveling to the Chinese mainland, and the island's tourism industry has been consistently urging the DPP authorities to lift the ban as soon as possible.

According to reports from Taiwan media, on March 1 which marked the first day for Taiwan travel agencies to resume organizing tours to the mainland, at least 50 tour groups comprising thousands of people from the island traveled to the mainland.

Taiwan's tourism industry has urged the DPP authorities to respond to the enthusiasm of the island's residents for travel and to promptly lift the ban on group tours to the mainland.

Since last year, Taiwan authorities have repeatedly claimed to have made plans to resume Taiwan travel agencies' group tours to the mainland. However, in February of this year, they announced that the original plan would no longer be implemented.

The tourism regulatory authorities in Taiwan abruptly changed their policy, halting the group tours to the mainland that were originally scheduled to open after the Spring Festival. They only allowed tourists who had completed the registration procedures to travel in groups from March to the end of May, and ordered travel agencies to stop selling group tour tickets from that day onwards.

Chen said, "Such arbitrary changes and abuse of power severely damage the interests of the island's travel industry, depriving people from all walks of life of their freedom to travel. This has already caused widespread anger and alienation among the people in Taiwan."

In the face of the calls from the tourism industry and the recent excitement among Taiwan tourists for the opportunity to travel to the mainland, the DPP authorities should immediately cease political manipulation, respond to the public's wishes, and make a change for the better, he said.