Mainland Affairs Council
25°02′33″N 121°31′11″E / 25.04250°N 121.51972°E
| 大陸委員會 Dàlù Wěiyuánhuì (Mandarin) Thai-liu̍k Vî-yèn-fi (Hakka) | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | August 1988 (as Inter-Agency Mainland Affairs Committee) 28 January 1991 (as MAC)[1] |
| Preceding agency |
|
| Jurisdiction | Republic of China |
| Headquarters | Zhongzheng, Taipei, Taiwan |
| Ministers responsible |
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| Parent agency | Executive Yuan |
| Child agency | |
| Website | www |
| Mainland Affairs Council | |||||||||||||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | 大陸委員會 | ||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 大陆委员会 | ||||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | Mainland Committee | ||||||||||||||||
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The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) is a cabinet-level administrative agency under the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China (Taiwan). The MAC is responsible for the planning, development, and implementation of the cross-strait relations policy which targets mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau.[2]
The MAC's counterpart body in the People's Republic of China is the Taiwan Affairs Office. Both states officially claim each other's territory, though both sides control only part of the claimed territory. The affairs related to the PRC in mainland China is dealt by the MAC, instead of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The council plays an important role in setting policy and development of cross-strait relations and advising the central government.[2] It is administered by a cabinet level Minister. The current Minister is Chiu Tai-san. The agency funds and indirectly administers the Straits Exchange Foundation which directly interacts with agencies from the PRC.
History
[edit]The government of ROC does not recognize the legitimacy and sovereignty of PRC since its establishment in 1949, and heated armed conflicts went on between both parties. The Republic of China controls only Taiwan, Penghu, and some other islands, and therefore is usually known as "Taiwan", sometimes referred to as the "Free Area" in the Republic of China by the Constitution of the Republic of China. The People's Republic of China controls mainland China as well as Hong Kong, Macau, and other islands, and is therefore usually known as "China". As the relation between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait cooled down, ROC government allowed family-related visits to mainland China in November 1987. The Executive Yuan established the Inter-Agency Mainland Affairs Committee in August 1988 as a taskforce to handle mainland-related affairs among the authorities. In April 1990, the ROC government drafted the Organization Act for the Mainland Affairs Council to strengthen mainland China policy making and to enhance policy making efficiency. The third reading of the act was passed by the Legislative Yuan on 18 January 1991. On 28 January 1991, the act was promulgated by President Lee Teng-hui thus officially authorized the Mainland Affairs Council to be the agency for the overall planning and handling of affairs towards mainland China.[1][2]
In 2017, some of the responsibilities of the Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission (MTAC) were absorbed into the MAC's Department of Hong Kong and Macao Affairs, creating the expanded Department of Hong Kong, Macao, Inner Mongolia, and Tibet Affairs.[3]
As cross-strait relation is worsened again, the MAC banned Taiwanese citizens from working at Confucius Institutes, the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS), the All-China Youth Federation, and the All-China Federation of Taiwan Compatriots in 2024 out of national security concerns.[4]
Organizational structure
[edit]
The agency is organized in the following departments:[5]
Internal departments
[edit]- Department of Policy Planning
- Department of Cultural and Educational Affairs
- Department of Economic Affairs
- Department of Legal Affairs
- Department of Hong Kong, Macao, Inner Mongolia, and Tibet Affairs
- Department of Information and Liaison
Offices
[edit]- Secretariat
- Personnel Office
- Accounting Office
- Civil Servant Ethics Office
- Information Management
Others
[edit]List of MAC heads
[edit]
Non-partisan/ unknown Kuomintang (Nationalist) Democratic Progressive Party Taiwan Solidarity Union
See also
[edit]- National Unification Council
- Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau
- Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland — similar organization in North Korea
- Ministry of Unification — similar organization in South Korea
- Minister of Intra-German Relations — similar organization in West Germany
- State Ministry for Reconciliation and Civic Equality of Georgia — similar organization in Georgia
- Ministry of Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories — similar organization in Ukraine
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Mainland Affairs Council, Republic of China (Taiwan)". 22 February 2017. Archived from the original on 5 May 2024. Retrieved 23 March 2013.
- ^ a b c Chi, Su (2009). "Conciliation in cross-strait relations". Taiwan's relations with Mainland China. London and New York: Routledge. p. 4. ISBN 978-0-415-46454-3. Archived from the original on May 5, 2024. Retrieved August 28, 2017.
- ^ "Taiwan calls time on Mongolia and Tibet affairs commission". South China Morning Post. 2017-08-16. Archived from the original on 2020-06-25. Retrieved 2020-04-26.
- ^ "Taiwan bans its citizens from working for China's Confucius Institutes". Focus Taiwan. 2024-05-03. Archived from the original on May 3, 2024. Retrieved 2024-05-05.
- ^ "Organizational Structure of the MAC ─ Mainland Affairs Council". Archived from the original on 2014-05-08.
External links
[edit]- Official website
Media related to Mainland Affairs Council at Wikimedia Commons
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