For some 150,000 Filipinos working in Taiwan, the worry in mid-February 2020 was simple: would they still be able to walk in visa-free? A dispute over a coronavirus travel ban had put that privilege in play.
The trouble began on 10 February, when Manila announced it was adding Taiwan to a temporary ban on travellers from mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau. It had followed the World Health Organization, which counts Taiwan as part of China. Health Undersecretary Eric Domingo admitted the Taiwan part was not enforced at once because of “confusion” among agencies. Enforcement on non-Filipino travellers only started over the weekend.
Taipei answered fast. On the night of 11 February the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Manila said Taiwan had been “wrongly included” and called itself a sovereign, independent state that issues its own passports and visas. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou said confusing Taiwan with China had “caused troubles”, and that the “Chinese factor is obvious” in Manila’s decision. The office urged the Philippines to correct the decision at once.
Visa-free entry in the balance
Then came the threat. Angelito Banayo, who chairs the Manila Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei, said ending visa-free entry for Filipinos could be one of the “reactive measures” Taiwan might use. “This could be the first step. Anything is possible,” he said, adding that the cabinet under President Tsai Ing-wen had already drawn up a list of possible responses. He judged the ban to be political rather than medical. Taiwan had granted Filipinos a visa-free privilege, and the Philippines had given Taiwanese a 14-day visa-free stay in 2017, later extended to July 2020.
On Friday, 14 February, Ou told reporters Taiwan had prepared certain “response measures” while it waited for an answer to its demand. Agence France-Presse reported that the Philippines lifted the ban on Taiwan the same day.
Taiwan was not alone in being caught. Italy had banned flights by Taiwanese carriers, Bangladesh had stopped Taiwanese travellers from entering, and Mongolia, after first imposing a ban, said it would review visa applications case by case.
Sources
- Taiwan expresses 'grave concern' over inclusion in PH travel ban (Rappler, Sofia Tomacruz)
- Coronavirus: Philippines lifts Taiwan travel ban after Taipei threatens Filipino work visas (South China Morning Post / Agence France-Presse)
- Taiwan Considers Travel Restriction for Filipinos (VisaGuide.News)
