The New Power Party (NPP) yesterday urged the CPBL to consider changing its title to avoid misunderstandings and to increase the exposure of the nation’s professional baseball games.
The party, which has also been asking the government to change the name of China Airlines Ltd (中華航空), raised the issue of CPBL’s name after the world’s first baseball season opener was played in Taiwan amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
No fans were allowed to watch the games at the ball parks.
Photo: CNA
“Because of the pandemic, games hosted by the CPBL have so far attracted millions of spectators from around the world. However, Jeffrey Bellone, a sports columnist in FanSided, has erroneously called the league ‘China Professional Baseball League,’” the NPP said on its Facebook page.
China’s professional baseball league, the China National Baseball League, was founded last year.
“It is little wonder that people were confused by these two leagues, because one has ‘Chinese’ in its title and the other one has ‘China.’ Do we really want to see people around the world calling our baseball players ‘Chinese baseball players?’” the NPP said.
Although the CPBL is a private organization, it received government funding after it was hit by game-fixing scandals, and fans have supported the league, despite the merger of two baseball leagues and multiple team ownership changes, it said.
Baseball should be considered a public asset, because people have equated the sport with national image and identity, rather than perceiving it as just a sport, the party added.
“The CPBL should quickly hear and integrate opinions on this matter from all stakeholders, and it should consider this matter from the perspective of raising the publicity of the nation’s professional baseball culture. The government, on the other hand, should explicitly express its position on this matter,” it said.
CPBL commissioner John Wu (吳志揚) last week said that the league is a private organization, adding that it is only the English-language name that is causing confusion.
“The country’s official title is the ‘Republic of China,’ so our name in Chinese does not cause any problems. This name carries 31 years of history, and we have to consider the necessity and efficacy of the name change campaign. This could potentially change our relations with the Sports Administration and international baseball organizations,” he said.
TAIWAN PROTECTION MEASURE: US Army General Charles Flynn would not say where in the Asia-Pacific the missiles would be sent, but only that they would arrive in 2024 The US is to send medium-range missiles including the Standard Missile 6 (SM-6) and Tomahawk to the Asia-Pacific next year to deter a Chinese attack on Taiwan, US military news Web site Defense One reported. The report cited comments US Army General Charles Flynn made during the annual Halifax International Security Forum on Nov. 19. “We have tested them and we have a battery or two of them today,” Flynn was quoted as saying. “In [20]24. We intend to deploy that system in your region. I’m not going to say where and when. But I will just say that we will
LOYALTY: The 10 active and retired soldiers betrayed the nation and its people by leaking and passing on military secrets to China, the High Prosecutors’ Office said Ten former and current military officers were yesterday indicted on charges of spying for China, including two who allegedly filmed themselves pledging loyalty to Beijing. The High Prosecutors’ Office requested life imprisonment for the suspects in light of the severity of the crime. The 10 active-duty and retired officers included members of the 601st Brigade of the Aviation Special Forces comprising attack helicopter squadrons and elite combat units in charge of defending northern Taiwan, including Taipei. The other suspects came from Huadong Defense Command, in charge of defending the eastern coast; Kinmen Defense Command, in charge of defending Kinmen and Matsu; and one
NO FREE LUNCH: Taiwanese joining the trips to China met TAO and United Front Work officials who urged them to vote for candidates who support closer ties with Beijing The Ciaotou Prosecutors’ Office in Kaohsiung yesterday released two suspects on bail who have been accused of recruiting Taiwanese to join tours to China funded by Beijing and in which they were urged to vote for pan-blue candidates in January’s presidential and legislative elections. The pan-blue camp generally refers to the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), the People First Party, the New Party and the Young China Party, which support closer relations with China. Prosecutors said that a man, surnamed Cheng (鄭), and a woman, surnamed Yeh (葉), who are members of the China Pan-Blue Association, recruited Taiwanese tourists to join tours arranged
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus yesterday slammed a proposal by New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential candidate, to permit a “significant number” of Chinese students to study and work in Taiwan, saying it would be detrimental to young Taiwanese. At an event on Monday hosted by nine major industrial and business groups, Hou said that if elected, he would reinitiate cross-strait dialogue on the premise that Taiwan’s dignity would not be compromised and that the talks would be held in good faith. The talks would include lifting a ban on Chinese tour groups and
RSS