Minister Hsu Chih-jung Denies Misusing Public Funds for Overseas Trips, Cites 30-Page Report

Overseas Community Affairs Council Minister Hsu Chih-jung on Tuesday refuted accusations from the Taiwan People's Party legislative caucus that she misused public funds for a 26-day, seven-country trip. The caucus alleged the visit was a "fake inspection, real tourism" due to a supposedly brief, 5-page report.

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The People First Party is deliberately smearing us and hasn't done their homework. I find it very regrettable.

Hsu, speaking on a radio program, called the accusations "deliberately smearing" and stated the opposition party had not done their homework. She clarified the actual report contains 30 pages and detailed that the trip's purpose was to inspect Chinese language centers operated by the council abroad. She contrasted this with past practices, noting that when Jaw Shaw-kong chaired the council, his inspection trips lacked detailed reports, sometimes consisting of only a few lines in a telegram.

The council's work involves supporting overseas Chinese communities and expanding international diplomacy. Hsu highlighted the need to teach Mandarin to second and third-generation overseas Chinese and to counter China's influence among these communities. She mentioned that the council operates over 90 Chinese language centers globally, including in the U.S., Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium, and the Czech Republic. She also pointed to collaborations with the U.S. State Department to offer Mandarin courses to Americans and similar initiatives in Japan.

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The actual report has 30 pages, not 5.

During her 26-day trip, Hsu visited ten locations, spending a maximum of two days at each. Her itinerary included a three-day Chinese Language Center seminar in Atlanta, a yearly event with a U.S. government contract. She also attended the annual convention of the Taiwanese American Physicians Association, an overseas community that provides medical aid to Taiwan's diplomatic allies. Furthermore, she noted the establishment of Chinese language centers in U.S. libraries and even at Google's headquarters in Silicon Valley to teach Mandarin to engineers, some of whom may be stationed in Taiwan.

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When Jaw Shaw-kong was chairman of the Overseas Community Affairs Council, there were no reports for overseas trips, only 3-4 lines in a telegram.

Hsu also recalled her own experience as a Chinese language teacher abroad during her studies and emphasized that her role as council minister is to care for overseas compatriots. She criticized the opposition's focus on trivial matters instead of substantive issues, arguing that political mudslinging does not benefit the nation. She also mentioned that previous council chairs, like Chang Hsiao-yen, did not submit detailed reports for their overseas trips.

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The opposition party doesn't care about these things, they only care about me eating desserts, and they deliberately smear us, accusing the report of only having 5 pages and how much money was spent, ignoring the actual 30-page report.