China eases work permit for Taiwanese

BEIJING — Beijing on Wednesday said it has eliminated the need for Taiwanese citizens to apply for permission to work in China, in its latest effort to woo the island’s skilled younger workers amid a diplomatic freeze.

The move is part of a package that aims to provide Taiwan residents with treatment equal to that of Chinese citizens in studying, starting businesses and employment, said the spokesman for the Cabinet’s Taiwan Affairs Office, Ma Xiaoguang.

The elimination of work permits was also extended to residents of Hong Kong and Macau, former British and Portuguese colonies that reverted to Chinese rule late last century. China is also anxious to win over young Hong Kongers, many of whom see their city being dominated by the mainland economy while its civil liberties are under increasing threat.

China hopes such measures will undercut support for the self-governing Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen, whom Beijing loathes for her refusal to endorse the notion that Taiwan is a part of China.

Over recent weeks, China has forced international airlines to stop referring to Taiwan as a separate country on their websites. It also allegedly prompted the Asian Olympic Committee to withdraw the island’s right to host a youth competition scheduled for next year in the central city of Taichung. — The Associated Press