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GIO looking for Athens publicity options

With no response yet from the Athens Olympic Organizing Com-mittee to the nation's protest against the removal of its advertisements, Taiwan is scheduled to launch a new promotional campaign via alternate channels today, the first day of the Games.

"It's very important not to give up, especially when we're in a politically difficult situation," said David Lee (李南陽), director of the Department of International Information Services under the Government Information Office (GIO).

"If we give up and cave in to the pressure of China, we're bound to lose our voice in the international arena and diminish the nation's profile," he said.

Meanwhile, two European human rights groups have voiced their support for the nation and lodged a complaint to Olympics officials.

Olympic Watch, based in the Czech Republic, has said the groups are "extremely concerned" that China's pressure may have prompted airport officials to block or remove Taiwan's promotional posters and billboards. The Germany-based International Society for Human Rights has denounced China's bullying behavior and said that Taiwan's freedom of speech should be safeguarded.

According to Lee, the GIO has commissioned CNN International to air a 30-second promotional commercial on its Europe channel from today through Aug. 29, and on the Asia channel today and tomorrow. It is estimated that the two channels will reach an audience of over 102 million.

The GIO also plans to run a half-page ad in the International Herald Tribune on Aug. 17. The paper, delivered to more than 180 countries every day, boasts a worldwide circulation of about 264,000.

The GIO reported yesterday that the Olympic organizing committee had asked that Taiwan's advertisements and publicity posters be removed. The GIO said that it believed the request came after pressure from China.

The ads are part of the GIO's 150,000-euro publicity campaign during the Olympics. In addition to placing posters on 500 luggage carts at Athens International Airport and the exteriors of 50 of the city's electric trams, the GIO had also planned on having large outdoor billboards erected along the expressway from the international airport to downtown Athens.

While the ads on the 500 luggage carts have already been removed, Lee said that some posted on the 50 electric trams still remained as of yesterday.

"This is not the first case of China suppressing our diplomatic space, and it's definitely not the last one," Lee said.

The country's representative office in Greece yesterday told the Taipei Times that despite the incident it will make efforts to increase the nation's visibility.

"We have mapped out a contingency plan to promote Taiwan, such as accepting local media interviews, running ads in the broadcast media and other possibilities which I am not allowed to reveal now for fear of further oppression from China," said Eric Chiang (蔣昌成), director of the information section of Taiwan's representative office in Italy, which has been assigned to help resolve the advertisement controversy.

Chiang told the Taipei Times that the organizing committee adopted an arbitrary manner. When asked what the reason was, a committee member responded, "I am not obliged to give you any reason," according to Chiang.

The GIO has made it clear that it would withhold the 150,000-euro campaign fee should the committee not honor the contract signed with Taiwan.

With no sign of seeing the contract honored, Lee said that the GIO will use the money to pay for the ads run on CNN and in the International Herald Tribune, as well as for the full-page color ad run in the Olympics special report of Time Europe, due out next Monday.

The money will also pay for the same ad appearing in the September issue of BBC On Air magazine, which has a circulation of 20,000.
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