The Taiwanese government said it could take countermeasures if the Philippines keep its entry ban on Taiwanese over fears amid the coronavirus outbreak.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou warned that Taiwan has a retaliatory plan against the Philippines’ travel restriction but she declined to elaborate it further.
“We will continue to communicate with the Philippines and explain that this is a one-sided and wrong decision by the Philippines’ health ministry, which has already affected the relationship between the 2 countries of Taiwan and the Philippines,” she said.
Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) Chair Angelito Banayo said Taiwan could end up canceling visa-free privileges for Filipinos.
According to Reuters, around 115,000 Filipinos are employed in Taiwan as factory workers and domestic helpers.
The Philippine Government decided to ban Taiwanese citizens from visiting the country in its adherence to a one-China policy. Same restrictions were also implemented by other countries as the World Health Organization (WHO) regarded Taiwan’s virus cases in the category for China.
Taiwan has protested against WHO for its unfair decision of lumping them with China considering that they only have 18 virus cases while the mainland has more than 60,000.
Philippines’ Health Minister said it will thoroughly examine all factors and potential risks before it could affirm the lift of travel ban on Taiwan.All inbound travel from China and its special administrative regions Macau and Hong Kong have also been banned in the Philippines.
