To: Mr. Dennis Wilder
National Security Council
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, D.C.   20500     USA

Sept. 4, 2007

Dear Mr. Wilder,

On August 30, you stated that "Taiwan, or the Republic of China, is not at this point a state in the international community." I am very concerned with the human rights of the Taiwanese people, and hence I want to ask you: What is the next step?

In this regard, please allow me to submit this inquiry regarding the interpretation and enforcement of the Immigration and Naturalization Act to your office for action. My inquiry involves the "acceptance" of Republic of China passports as valid travel documents by US Customs and Border Protection.

As you know, on October 25, 2004, Secretary of State Powell stated that "Taiwan does not enjoy sovereignty as a nation." The background to these remarks is as follows --

In General Order No. 1 of Sept. 2, 1945, General MacArthur directed Chiang Kai-shek (aka the "Republic of China") to go to Taiwan and accept the surrender of Japanese troops. When the Japanese troops in Taiwan surrendered, the military occupation of Taiwan began. In the Senate ratified San Francisco Peace Treaty (SFPT) of April 28, 1952, Japan renounced the territorial sovereignty of Taiwan, but this territorial sovereignty was not awarded to Chiang Kai-shek's Republic of China.

As a result, after late April 1952, the Republic of China cannot be considered as the legal government of Taiwan. Moreover, this has been formalized in US law, because according to the Taiwan Relations Act, passed by the Congress in 1979, the nomenclature of "Republic of China" is no longer recognized under US law.

I believe that it is the duty of all federal government employees to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. According to Article VI of the Constitution, the San Francisco Peace Treaty is part of the "the supreme law of the land." Hence, the specifications of this self-executing treaty should be considered binding on all US government departments.

REFERENCE: INA 101(a)(30)
The term "passport" means any travel document issued by competent authority showing the bearer's origin, identity, and nationality if any, which is valid for the admission of the bearer into a foreign country.

I realize that such INA determinations do not involve any considerations regarding whether the United States has given "official diplomatic recognition" to the regime in question. I also realize that there may be additional political considerations in evaluating the legality or legitimacy of some issuing agencies' passports in the world today.

However, the situation of Taiwan is very clear. According to the Taiwan Relations Act and the Senate ratified SFPT -- there is no way that the Republic of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs can be construed as the competent authority for issuing passports to native Taiwanese persons under the Immigration and Naturalization Act of the United States, as specified in INA 101(a)(30).

I believe it is your duty to forcefully point out the error of the current situation to the appropriate US government department and to call for a complete investigation.

Your assistance in further clarifying this matter would be greatly appreciated.

I also refer you to the "Declaration of the Taiwan Status" at http://www.taiwanadvice.com/declare.htm


Sincerely,



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