The nation would fight hard against “GTB lunatics,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said yesterday in response to a Chinese official’s ridicule of President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman Ma Xiaoguang (馬曉光) at a news conference in Beijing on Wednesday criticized Tsai’s inspection of military bases and letter to Pope Francis in response to his message for the 52nd World Day of Peace on Jan. 1.
In the letter, Tsai said that Taiwan would remain resilient due to Beijing’s threat to invade Taiwan by force and continued suppression of its presence in the international community.
Photo: Lin Cheng-kung, Taipei Times
Ma ridiculed Tsai for “dressing up” like the cartoon character Popeye and acting like a Chinese opera actress when “complaining to foreigners,” adding that the moves were made to serve the interests of Tsai and her party.
Wu yesterday on Twitter defended Tsai, saying that Taiwan is on the front lines of the fight for freedom and democracy.
“We’ll keep fighting hard against state-level interference, infiltration, disinformation, military threats, international assaults, wumao, GTB lunatics & African swine fever,” he wrote.
The term wumao refers to Internet users who are paid to support the Chinese government’s propaganda, while “GTB” is a romanized acronym for the office, which is pronounced guo tai ban in Mandarin.
The Mainland Affairs Council on Wednesday said that the office’s ridicule and inappropriate remarks only show its rudeness and ignorance of how a democratic society functions.
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