00:00A hostile foreign force. That's how President Lai Qingde described China in a speech on national security last month.
00:09In that same speech, Lai said he wanted to increase transparency for religious groups traveling to China for exchanges.
00:17Many temples in Taiwan share close ties with counterparts in China, and they'll often travel for religious exchanges.
00:36But religion is tightly controlled by China's ruling Communist Party.
00:40With China intent on taking control of Taiwan, Lai's government says it's concerned about the safety of these types of exchanges.
00:49建议付中国旅行的风险越来越高。113年元旦期间,陆委会接获通报之国人附中失联,招留制,盘查或关押者合计71人。
01:04未通报之数字可能数倍于此。
01:08Just over a month on from Lai's speech, the Interior Ministry now has a system in place.
01:15Religious and civic groups can register their travel plans to China on its website.
01:21Participation is voluntary for the public, and its creators say users only need to provide the bare minimum of information.
01:28所以我们这个登陆专区最主要的目的就是提供,不管是宗教,人民团体或者是公职人员,如果你有留下这些登陆的资讯的话,我们就登陆,然后必要性地给予揭露,并不涉及各自的部分。
01:41Around 20 groups have already registered on the website since its launch, but the reception has been mixed.
01:49一般的话就是我们会委托旅行社来办理嘛。
01:53旅行社办理的话,在过程来说,它就是会合乎政府的一个所需去承办嘛。
01:59我们是很单纯,宗教的交流而已。
02:02每个宗庙,每个人的声音又不一样,每个人的想法又不一样。
02:05到时候会真的很乱,让它很自然地交流,感觉这样是最好的啦。
02:10Currently, only heads of local government have to register their China travel plans with the government,
02:17but the ministry says it's encouraging all elected officials to do so.
02:22With this new system, worshippers and civic groups can choose whether to let the government
02:26know about their movements in China, but whether it can help protect Taiwanese across the strait
02:32remains to be seen.
02:33李心春, and Lesley Liao for Taiwan Plus.
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