Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Chou Seng Tou, ambassador of the Republic of China to the Holy See, has concluded his mission and will return to Taiwan. His resignation takes effect today.
The diplomat has told to his friends that, with his return to the island, his diplomatic career is over, and he will teach at the Catholic university Fu Ren, in Xinzhuang, near Taipei.
Chou Seng Tou, 66, became famous because during his mission to the Vatican, he became a Catholic, being baptized at the parish of Sant Eugenio on Valle Giulia on April 17, 2006, Easter Monday. In an interview with AsiaNews, he said that what had led him to become a Catholic was the witness of charity shown by Christians.
The diplomat has declared that he is also returning to Taiwan in order to be closer to his family, which played an important part in his conversion.
Saying goodbye to Benedict XVI, Vatican figures, and friends, he said that in his teaching of international politics at Fu Ren, he hopes to focus the interest of the young students on the international status of the Vatican.
Chou Seng Tou will be replaced by Larry Wang Yu-yuan, 61, who headed Taiwan's diplomatic mission in Holland.