李慶安: You are an American citizen!

Here is a short and sweet message for 李慶安: You are an American citizen!

Citizenship lesson for Lee

I was shocked to learn that Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Diane Lee (李慶安) does not seem to have even a basic understanding of US law regarding her citizenship. In fact, she seemed to try to confuse voters with misleading statements about US law, just as President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) did a few months ago.

The US State Department’s Web site provides the following: A person wishing to renounce his or her US citizenship must voluntarily and with intent to relinquish US citizenship:

1. appear in person before a US consular or diplomatic officer, in a foreign country (normally at a US embassy or consulate); and

2. sign an oath of renunciation.

“Renunciations that do not meet the conditions described above have no legal effect. Because of the provisions of section 349(a)(5), Americans cannot effectively renounce their citizenship by mail, through an agent, or while in the United States. In fact, US courts have held certain attempts to renounce US citizenship to be ineffective on a variety of grounds, as discussed below,” it says.

I hope Taiwanese will wake up and not allow themselves to be fooled by the KMT.

JIM CHUNG

Southfield, Michigan