Taiwan has become the object of a US congressional battle, with a Republican candidate accusing his Democrat opponent in a new TV ad of violating house rules by having lobbyists pay for a US$22,000 trip to Taiwan last year — except there’s a problem: the ad shows the Chinese flag as a backdrop.
The ad, paid for by Republican congressional candidate Matt Doheny, has led to some head scratching in the US and accusations that the “inflammatory” error could mislead the US public.
At one point, the ad shows a composite image of New York Congressman Bill Owens on the left-hand side of the screen, holding a blown-up picture of a first-class airline ticket. President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) stands in mid-screen, also holding the airline ticket. In the background is a supine white island in the shape of Taiwan, with the word “Taiwan” inscribed on it in black, while the right-hand side of the screen displays two yellow stars on a red background, in what is clearly the flag of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
Reporting the matter on Monday, WPTZ News Channel 5 contacted Doheny to ask for an explanation and whether the mistake might inflame anti-China sentiment among US voters.
An unapologetic Doheny repeatedly evaded questions about the flag, though at one point he said: “Obviously, there’s two parts of China.”
“Well look, you think about what the issues are — people want to make sure that we have economic growth, jobs,” he said. “That’s what my campaign’s all about and again this [Owen’s] trip doesn’t lead to that. It only broke the rules.”
Asked if he planned to change the ad, Doheny declined to comment.
In its attempt to shed light on Taiwan’s situation, the TV station did not quite get all the history right either, though it rightly distinguished between the two flags.
“Although Taiwan is diplomatically a part of China and has never officially seceded, the Asian country does consider itself an independent nation, and they do have their own flag, which is clearly different from the People’s Republic of China’s,” it said.
The reporter then called the Taiwanese consulate to double-check, whereupon a female voice described the colors and patterns of the flag used by Taiwan.
“It’s red and blue, with a white star [sic] on it,” the woman said.
Owens, who denies any wrongdoing by having the US$22,000 trip he and his wife Jane made in December last year paid for by Washington lobbyists, has since repaid the money, and told WPTZ that the use of the PRC flag was “clearly, like the rest of the ad, misleading.”
He said his campaign had launched a counter-ad.
In Taipei, acting-Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Calvin Ho (何震寰) said the ministry would not comment on the campaign ad to avoid interfering in the election.
The ministry has no knowledge of the motivations behind the use of the PRC flag in the campaign ad, Ho said.
Should similar incidents involving foreign governments occur again and in a way that would have a negative impact on the nation’s interests, the ministry will not hesitate to lodge a protest, Ho said.
Asked if the campaign ad was one such harmful incident, Ho would not comment.
“There is no doubt that the country Owens visited was the Republic of China,” Ho said.
Additional reporting by Shih Hsiu-chuan
LIABILITIES MULLED: New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi said Taipei would find out if the firm was legally registered, the guide was licensed and the weather was assessed The assets of Tian Da Local Nature Co are to be frozen after at least four people died after falling into the Beishi River (北勢溪) on an outing the company had organized on Saturday, the Taipei City Government said yesterday. Six people — two adults and four children — were washed away by a flash flood on the river in New Taipei City’s Hubaotan (虎豹潭) area. They were participating in a Nature Joy Camp outdoor activity with a group of 16 adults and 15 children led by a guide surnamed Su (蘇). As of 4:30pm yesterday, four of the missing had been
Taiwanese worked more hours than people in all but three other countries in the world last year, Ministry of Labor data showed. Singapore placed first in average hours worked among the 40 economies surveyed, with an average of 2,288 hours per worker last year, the data showed. The city-state was followed by Colombia with 2,172 hours — based on 2019 data — and Mexico with 2,124 hours, it showed. Taiwan came in fourth, with 2,021 hours, it showed. South Korean workers clocked the third-most hours in Asia, with 1,908 hours, followed by Japan with 1,598 hours, it showed. However, compared with 2019, the survey found
The US 7th Fleet yesterday confirmed that a US Navy ship transited the Taiwan Strait on Thursday and Friday. “The Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Dewey [DDG 105] conducted a Taiwan Strait transit in cooperation with Royal Canadian Navy [RCN] Halifax-class frigate, HMCS Winnipeg, October 14-15, 2021,” the US 7th Fleet said in a statement. “Dewey’s and Winnipeg’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the commitment of the United States and our allies and partners to a free and open Indo-Pacific. Cooperation like this represents the centerpiece of our approach to a secure and prosperous region,” it added. The transit marked the
‘COUNTERPRODUCTIVE’: The German, French and Singaporean missions said that Taiwan’s COVID-19 restrictions are hindering local projects and business operations Several foreign missions in Taiwan have urged the government to ease its strict COVID-19 border controls, which they say are hurting in-person exchanges and business operations. The missions made the appeal in response to media inquiries on how the border controls have affected their respective countries’ exchanges with Taiwan, amid growing concerns voiced privately by Taiwan-based foreign offices and businesses regarding the restrictions. Taiwan has maintained strict entry requirements since March last year, generally prohibiting most arrivals except for citizens and foreign residents, while it has required those who enter the country to undergo a stringent 14-day quarantine. Although the rules have been
RSS