The Ministry of Commerce announced yesterday that it would drop
import tariffs on 15 categories of Taiwan-grown fruit from August 1
after the island's authorities refused to send envoys to talks
scheduled to be held in Xiamen, Fujian
Province on Wednesday.
The unilateral measure was first offered by the mainland in
early May following the visit of Kuomintang Chairman Lien Chan.
A ministry spokesperson said yesterday that government
departments have made preparations for Taiwanese farmers to sell
their produce on the mainland market as the fruit harvest
begins.
The 15 kinds of fruit covered are pineapples, lychees, papayas,
starfruit, mangos, guavas, wax apples, betel nuts, pomelos,
jujubes, coconuts, loquats, plums, peaches and persimmons.
Customs will make public the procedure for importing the fruit
later and quality supervision departments will take measures to
facilitate it, said a commerce ministry spokesperson.
He also urged Taiwan's authorities to help their fruit-growers
solve any problems arising from implementation of the policy.
On Saturday, Li Shuilin, chairman of the Cross Strait
Association for Economic and Trade Communication, had invited
non-governmental organizations designated by Taiwan's authorities,
the Taiwan Provincial Farmers' Association and other
non-governmental agricultural organizations to Wednesday's
talks.
Chen Yunlin, minister of the State Council's Taiwan Affairs
Office, said allowing the entry of Taiwanese fruit tariff-free was
a concrete effort by the mainland to promote the interests of
compatriots across the Straits.
(China Daily July 29, 2005)