Abuse of Emergency Assistance in SE Asia Prompts Call for Resource Conservation

Central News Agency, Taipei, May 22. Regarding the emergency assistance provided by Taiwan's overseas offices, diplomatic sources stated today that offices in Southeast Asian countries have received 3,600 requests for help in recent years and have assisted 2,300 people in returning to Taiwan. However, many cases involve individuals who knew beforehand that they were going abroad to engage in illegal activities, yet demanded the government waste resources to assist them afterward, and even borrowed money from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for airfare without repaying it. They urged the public to cherish emergency assistance resources. A citizen surnamed Lin recently claimed to the media that he lost contact while traveling in Pattaya, Thailand, in April, and was drugged and nearly sold for organ harvesting. The Pattaya Tourist Police refuted Lin's claims when interviewed by the Central News Agency, stating that the man was in an unstable mental state and was assisted by police to seek medical attention, with no external injuries, expressing surprise at his accusations. Informed sources stated today that the content exposed by Lin through the media after returning to Taiwan differs greatly from the facts. Lin's erratic behavior in Thailand was related to his personal condition, including avoiding contact while being assisted by the representative office in Thailand and providing false information, which severely affected the efficiency of the office's emergency assistance. Since returning to Taiwan, he has continued to contact the office through friends and family to accuse the "Thai side of improper handling" and requested the office to help "restore the truth." The office has provided a list of lawyers who speak Chinese and suggested he hire one. The official admitted that Lin's case is a prominent example of wasting government overseas emergency assistance resources and social resources. The official stated that while the government provides emergency assistance to travelers, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and representative offices in Southeast Asia continue to receive cases of citizens traveling to the region to engage in illegal activities like fraud, only to be detained by local governments or held by illegal organizations. Statistics from 2022 to mid-May this year show that the representative offices in Thailand, Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City, and Myanmar have received over 3,600 requests for assistance and have helped 2,300 people return to Taiwan. Explaining why the term "person-times" is used, the official pointed out that some citizens are recognized by overseas officials as "regulars" who repeatedly travel abroad and seek rescue. Many cases show that the individuals and their families knew in advance that they would engage in illegal activities abroad and later demanded the government mobilize significant public resources for assistance. In addition to consuming public resources, the official noted that many citizens use visa-free entry to Thailand to travel to fraud hubs in countries like Myanmar, and then ask the office for help after encountering problems. The offices must spend significant energy sending them back to Taiwan, often requiring them to be moved from Myanmar to Thailand and then to Taiwan in a very short time. Citizens often sign IOUs to borrow airfare from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The official cited a rescue project last year where 55 people borrowed one-way airfare, but only 12 have repaid the loans, leaving 43 in debt. Many left fake addresses and phone numbers, making it impossible for the Ministry to collect. As the loans are civil debts, suing for the roughly 10,000 NTD is not cost-effective, leaving the Ministry to wait for a three-year administrative process to write off the debt. The official stated that the government's emergency assistance system should not be a mechanism for people engaged in illegal activities abroad to solve their inability to return to Taiwan. Resources should be provided to those who truly need help, and if the trend of engaging in illegal activities abroad continues, it may affect the visa-free treatment and duration of stay provided by foreign governments to Taiwanese citizens.