TAIPEI - Taiwan's
government will evaluate whether to suspend direct trade
and transportation between the outlying island of Kinmen
and mainland China as a measure to contain the spread of
severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), a Mainland
Affairs Council (MAC) official said on Thursday.
MAC vice chairman Johnnason Liu made the remarks
after being informed of a resolution adopted by the
Kinmen county council to suggest that the central
government suspend the so-called "mini three links" for
one month.
Liu said Premier Yu Shyi-kun had instructed
the Ministry of the Interior and the MAC to convene
related government agencies to meet on Friday to
discuss the matter and to present their opinions and
decisions to the cabinet for final approval.
The
exchange of visits through the links, which were opened
on January 1, 2001, have markedly decreased since the SARS
outbreak in March, Liu noted.
According to
statistics compiled by the MAC, he continued, 997 people
departed for mainland China from Kinmen, as well as
Matsu, another Taiwan-controlled island covered by the
mini three links, during the period between April 28 and
May 14, while 901 arrived on the two islands from the
mainland. The resolution also suggests that the Kinmen
county government should impose a 10-day islandwide
quarantine to stem the potentially deadly disease from
spreading there.
