Australian Office in Taipei

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Australian Office in Taipei
澳洲辦事處
250px
President International Tower
Agency overview
Formed 1981 (as Australian Commerce and Industry Office)[1]
2012 (as Australian Office in Taipei)[2]
Jurisdiction  Taiwan
Headquarters Xinyi, Taipei, Taiwan
Minister responsible
  • Cathy Raper, Representative[3]
Website Australian Office Taipei

The Australian Office in Taipei (Chinese: 澳洲辦事處; pinyin: Àozhōu Bànshì Chù) represents Australian interests in Taiwan in the absence of formal diplomatic relations, functioning as a de facto embassy.[4] The Office is headed by a Representative, currently Cathy Raper.[3]

Its counterpart in Australia is the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Australia in Canberra.[5]

History

It was established in 1981 as the Australian Commerce and Industry Office.[1] This was under control of the Australian Chamber of Commerce.[6] It adopted its present name in 2012.[2]

The Visa and Citizenship Office of the Australian Consulate-General in Hong Kong is responsible for consular matters for applicants in Taiwan.[7]

Before 1972, Australia recognised Taiwan as the "Republic of China", and had an Embassy in Taipei, opened in 1966.[8] In 1972, diplomatic relations were ended following the decision of the government of Gough Whitlam to recognise the People's Republic of China.[9]

An unofficial organisation known as the Australia-Free China Society, established an office in 1974 to provide services for Australians visiting Taiwan, headed by Lu Chen-kai, Secretary-General of the Sino-Australian Cultural and Economic Association in Taipei.[10] In Australia, New South Wales MP Douglas Darby, President of the Australia-Free China Society, represented Taiwan in Australia.[11]

Representatives

Name Start of term End of term
Bill Mattingly[12] 1981 1990
Rob O'Donovan[12] 1990 1992
Colin Heseltine[13] 1992 1997
Sam Gerovich[13] 1997 2000
Frances Adamson[14] 2000 2005
Steve Waters[15] 2005 2008
Alice Cawte[16] 2008 2011
Kevin Magee[17] 2011 2014
Catherine Raper[3] 2014 present

See also

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate: 1962-1983, Ann Millar, UNSW Press, 2000, page 244
  2. 2.0 2.1 Australian office renamed, Taipei Times, May 30, 2012
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. The Australian Office in Taipei, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
  5. Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Australia
  6. Prospects for Australian Seafood Exports: A Case Study of the Taiwanese Market, Malcolm Tull Asia Research Centre on Social, Political, and Economic Change, Murdoch University, 1993, page 10
  7. Visas and migration, Australian Office
  8. Whitlam hasn't dumped Taiwan, Bruce Grant, The Age, July 14, 1971, page 5
  9. Taiwan country brief, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
  10. Free China Review, Volumes 24-25, W.Y. Tsao, 1974, page 4
  11. Love-hate with Taiwan, Sydney Morning Herald, March 12, 1974, page 4
  12. 12.0 12.1 Australian Backing Taipei GATT Bid, Taiwan Info, 19 February 1990
  13. 13.0 13.1 Taiwan-Australia Relations: Humming Along, University of Nottingham, February 6, 2014
  14. Business Lunch with HE Ms Frances Adamson, Australian Ambassador to the People's Republic of China (Melbourne), University of Melbourne, 3rd July 2014
  15. Cross-strait stability vital to Australia, envoy says,Taipei Times, January 31, 2006
  16. Australia praises Ma for avoiding dollar diplomacy, Taipei Times, October 27, 2008
  17. Interview with Kevin Magee, seasoned Australian diplomat, Radio Taiwan International, August 17, 2014

External links