China Plans To Lift Entry Permit Requirement For Taiwan Residents

BEIJING, June 15 (Bernama) -- Mainland China plans to lift the entry permit requirement for Taiwan residents, Xinhua news agency reported. The permit-free policy plan was announced by China's top political advisor Yu Zhengsheng Sunday, which aims to "continue to create better conditions for cross-Strait exchanges," the state-run news agency said. Yu, who is also the chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said this in his speech at the seventh Straits Forum. It is the largest annual event for cross-Strait grassroots exchanges, opened in Xiamen in the southeastern province of Fujian, the report said. Currently, Taiwan residents who visit the mainland must apply for a visa-like entry permit. Taiwan is a self-governing island which split from China amid the Chinese civil war in 1949. China, however, still insists on its sovereignty over Taiwan. --BERNAMA