Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/11/06
By: Lin Yi-li and Elizabeth Hsu

Berlin, Nov. 5 (CNA) The German man who launched a petition urging the German government to establish diplomatic relations with Taiwan has explained he wanted to encourage public debate about Taiwan so German society learns more about the nation.

Michael Kreuzberg, 71, comes from the port city Rostock on the Baltic Sea, which was once in East Germany. He initiated the petition before submitting it to parliament on May 31 and posted it online Sept. 11 to solicit endorsement signatures.

Currently, the petition has received enough signatures to be placed on the agenda of the German parliament or Bundestag, which has decided to hold a public hearing on Dec. 9.

In a recent interview with CNA, Kreuzberg introduced himself as a retiree who previously specialized in marine ecological conservation. In recent years he has undertaken relief work in Ghana and the Philippines to help improve the health care and education available to local children, he said.
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