A China-based Taiwanese singer who drew public ire after criticizing a Taiwanese K-pop singer for waving a Republic of China (ROC) flag said he would hold a news conference in Taiwan on Feb. 3 to tell his side of the story.
Huang An (黃安) accused 16-year-old Chou Tzu-yu (周子瑜), the Taiwanese member of the South Korean girl band TWICE, of supporting Taiwanese independence after she waved an ROC flag on a South Korean TV show.
The tip-off led to widespread criticizm of Chou in China.
An endorsement deal her group had with Chinese smartphone maker Huawei was jeopardized by Chou’s so-called pro-Taiwanese independence attitude.
Chou apologized to her management company JYP Entertainment and her Chinese and Taiwanese fans in a video released on YouTube on Friday, saying: “There is only one China... I have always felt proud of being Chinese.”
Park Jin-young, head of JYP Entertainment, also apologized.
The incident caused outrage among Taiwanese, who saw it as China bullying a teenager who was waving her nation’s flag.
The incident might have boosted president-elect Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) votes by 1 to 2 percentage points in Saturday’s election, said Michael Hsiao (蕭新煌), a research fellow at Academia Sinica’s Institute of Sociology.
Huang wrote on Weibo on Sunday that he was not the culprit in the incident, saying that he was “lucky to become” a singer who could influence “Taiwan’s election.”
He said he would explain “the whole story” behind the incident and present the truth.
Huang said in a Weibo post on Monday last week that he was not associating waving the ROC flag with Taiwan independence, but the issue was what the person waving the flag stood for.
Pro-independence Taiwanese media were using the incident to manufacture provocative headlines to incite Chinese, Huang said, adding that Chou must be working with them unless she says otherwise.
There are many people who could trigger sensitive issues between China and Taiwan, since almost everyone has a Facebook account, former Mainland Affairs Council chairman and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Lawmaker Su Chi (蘇起) said on Sunday.
People should remain calm and set their sights on the common good when dealing with issues regarding cross-strait relations, Su said.
FUKUOKA SITUATION: Japanese media reported that the pathogen is expected to be identified by the summer, while the CDC downplayed the idea that it was hMPV A “mysterious cold-like illness” reported in Japan’s Fukuoka Prefecture does not seem to be a new disease, but Japanese authorities have been asked about the situation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. The Fukuoka Prefectural Medical Association on Wednesday told a news conference that a “mystery cold” that has become a hot topic on social media is “highly likely to be caused by some kind of viral infection,” Japan’s KBC News reported. “Many people are experiencing symptoms starting with a sore throat, followed by a runny nose, phlegm and a severe cough,” KBC News reported, citing association officials. Health authorities are
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) arrived in Taiwan yesterday ahead of upcoming AI and technology events, saying he plans to meet with clients and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) during his visit. After landing at Taipei Songshan Airport, Huang posed for photos with fans and handed out Yakult drinks to reporters and supporters waiting at the scene, saying he has “a lot to do” during the trip. Asked about reports that Nvidia’s planned headquarters site in Taipei’s Beitou Shilin Technology Park could break ground on May 27, Huang said that if the company holds an event, he would
The Ministry of Finance this afternoon announced the winning numbers for the March-April uniform invoice lottery. The winning number for the NT$10 million (US$318,060) special prize is 19531471, and the winning number for the NT$2 million grand prize is 85941329. Three numbers were drawn for the NT$200,000 first prize: 07225810, 20231230 and 83518781. Those with receipts matching the last seven digits of any of the first-prize numbers will win the NT$40,000 second prize, while those matching the last six digits will win the NT$10,000 third prize. Those whose receipts match the last five digits of the first-prize numbers can claim the NT$4,000 fourth prize,
Taiwan Travelogue (臺灣漫遊錄), which earlier this week became the first Taiwanese novel to win the International Booker Prize, is to be adapted into a television series through a Taiwan-Japan coproduction, producer Chang Chen-yu (張辰漁) said yesterday. Chang, a producer at World Softest Production Film Co, wrote on Facebook that the company had been searching for projects with international appeal that retain a strong Taiwanese identity after colleagues and Japanese partners strongly recommended the novel. After reading the book, Chang said he immediately decided to pursue the screen rights. “A great story has the power to transcend time and borders, and connect countless people,”
RSS