Mainland Affairs Council
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The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) is a cabinet-level administrative agency under the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China (Taiwan). The MAC is responsible for the planning, development, and implementation of the cross-strait relations policy which targets mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau.<ref name="tail">Template:Cite book</ref>
The MAC's counterpart body in the People's Republic of China is the Taiwan Affairs Office. Both states officially claim each other's territory, though both sides control only part of the claimed territory. The affairs related to the PRC in mainland China is dealt by the MAC, instead of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The council plays an important role in setting policy and development of cross-strait relations and advising the central government.<ref name="tail" /> It is administered by a cabinet level Minister. The current Minister is Chiu Tai-san. The agency funds and indirectly administers the Straits Exchange Foundation which directly interacts with agencies from the PRC.
History
The government of ROC does not recognize the legitimacy and sovereignty of PRC since its establishment in 1949, and heated armed conflicts went on between both parties. The Republic of China controls only Taiwan, Penghu, and some other islands, and therefore is usually known as "Taiwan", sometimes referred to as the "Free Area" in the Republic of China by the Constitution of the Republic of China. The People's Republic of China controls mainland China as well as Hong Kong, Macau, and other islands, and is therefore usually known as "China". As the relation between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait cooled down, ROC government allowed family-related visits to mainland China in November 1987. The Executive Yuan established the Inter-Agency Mainland Affairs Committee in August 1988 as a taskforce to handle mainland-related affairs among the authorities. In April 1990, the ROC government drafted the Organization Act for the Mainland Affairs Council to strengthen mainland China policy making and to enhance policy making efficiency. The third reading of the act was passed by the Legislative Yuan on 18 January 1991. On 28 January 1991, the act was promulgated by President Lee Teng-hui thus officially authorized the Mainland Affairs Council to be the agency for the overall planning and handling of affairs towards mainland China.<ref name="autogenerated1"/><ref name=tail />
In 2017, some of the responsibilities of the Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission (MTAC) were absorbed into the MAC's Department of Hong Kong and Macao Affairs, creating the expanded Department of Hong Kong, Macao, Inner Mongolia, and Tibet Affairs.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
As cross-strait relations worsened again in the early 2020s, the MAC banned Taiwanese citizens from working at Confucius Institutes, the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS), the All-China Youth Federation, and the All-China Federation of Taiwan Compatriots in 2024 out of national security concerns.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In January 2025, the MAC revoked the operating license of The Strait Herald due to its united front work on the island.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Organizational structure
The agency is organized in the following departments:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Internal departments
- Department of Policy Planning
- Department of Cultural and Educational Affairs
- Department of Economic Affairs
- Department of Legal Affairs
- Department of Hong Kong, Macao, Inner Mongolia, and Tibet Affairs
- Department of Information and Liaison
Offices
- Secretariat
- Personnel Office
- Accounting Office
- Civil Servant Ethics Office
- Information Management
Others
List of MAC heads
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See also
- National Unification Council
- Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau
- Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland — similar organization in North Korea
- Ministry of Unification — similar organization in South Korea
- Minister of Intra-German Relations — similar organization in West Germany
- State Ministry for Reconciliation and Civic Equality of Georgia — similar organization in Georgia
- Ministry of Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories — similar organization in Ukraine
References
External links
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