Being watched over by Chinese security personnel is an “honor” for Taiwanese musicians performing in China, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ko Chih-en (柯志恩) said yesterday.
She said any picture could be subject to multiple interpretations after New Power Party (NPP) Legislator Freddy Lim (林昶佐) showed a photograph purporting to show ranks of Chinese military police standing by at a concert of a Taiwanese musician.
Lim showed the picture during a question-and-answer session of the Legislative Yuan’s Education and Culture Committee.
“The military police are mainly concerned about the possibility of a riot, because everyone [in the audience] is so high,” Ko said.
She asked Minister of Culture Hung Meng-chi (洪孟啟) if he would dare discourage Taiwanese musicians from performing in China.
“This is an extremely great honor for a singer,” Ko said.
Lim — who is the lead singer of metal band Chthonic, which has been banned from performing in China because of its pro-Taiwanese independence stance — said the picture illustrates the failure of President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration to protect the rights of Taiwanese musicians performing in China.
“In eight years, we have never made any concrete demands that the freedom of our singers to perform be protected,” Lim said.
UNREASONABLE SURVEILLANCE: A camera targeted on an road by a neighbor captured a man’s habitual unsignaled turn into home, netting him dozens of tickets The Taichung High Administrative Court has canceled all 45 tickets given to a man for failing to use a turn signal while driving, as it considered long-term surveillance of his privacy more problematic than the traffic violations. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), lives in Changhua County and was reported 45 times within a month for failing to signal while driving when he turned into the alley where his residence is. The reports were filed by his neighbor, who set up security cameras that constantly monitored not only the alley but also the door and yard of Tseng’s house. The surveillance occurred from July
A Japan Self-Defense Forces vessel entered the Taiwan Strait yesterday, Japanese media reported. After passing through the Taiwan Strait, the Ikazuchi was to proceed to the South China Sea to take part in a joint military exercise with the US and the Philippines, the reports said. Japan Self-Defense Force vessels were first reported to have passed through the strait in September, 2024, with two further transits taking place in February and June last year, the Asahi Shimbun reported. Yesterday’s transit also marked the first time since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi took office that a Japanese warship has been sent through the Taiwan
‘SAME OLD TRICK’: Even if Beijing resumes individual travel to Taiwan, it would only benefit Chinese tourism companies, the Economic Democracy Union convener said China’s 10 new “incentives” are “sugar-coated poison,” an official said yesterday, adding that Taiwanese businesses see them clearly for what they are, but that Beijing would inevitably find some local collaborators to try to drums up support. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, made the remark ahead of a news conference the General Chamber of Commerce is to hold today. The event, titled “Industry Perspectives on China’s Recent Pro-Taiwan Policies,” is expected to include representatives from industry associations — such as those in travel, hotels, food and agriculture — to request the government cooperate with China’s new measures, people familiar with
ANOTHER OPTION: The 13-year-old, whose residency status was revoked for holding a Chinese passport, could still apply for residency on humanitarian grounds, the government said The Executive Yuan has rejected an appeal from a 13-year-old Chinese student surnamed Lu (陸), whose permanent residency was revoked after immigration officers discovered he held a Chinese passport. Lu in December 2023 applied to settle in Taiwan to be with his mother, surnamed Lin (林), who is a Taiwan resident, an appeal decision released this month by the Executive Yuan showed. Lin settled in Taiwan after marrying a Taiwanese man in 2003, but the two divorced in 2011, and after marrying a Chinese man, she had Lu, the Executive Yuan’s appeals committee said. Lu’s application was approved in December 2024, and in
RSS