Hong Kong singer Jacky Cheung (張學友) has been criticized by the “Little Pink” — a term used to describe young, jingoistic Chinese nationalists on the Web — for saying “Hong Kong jia you [加油, an expression of encouragement].”
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the handover of Hong Kong’s return to Chinese rule on Friday, China Central Television made a series of programs in which it interviewed Cheung and other celebrities.
Cheung, speaking in Cantonese, said in the interview that “Hong Kong has been through a lot in the past 25 years, including ups and downs” and ended with the phrase “Hong Kong jia you,” which drew fierce criticism from some Chinese on social media.
Photo courtesy of Universal Music Hong Kong
The phrase was widely used during the territory’s anti-extradition protests in 2019, and was viewed as taboo by Beijing and the Hong Kong government.
Some Chinese criticized Cheung for being “unpatriotic” because his words seemed to side with the protesters and some took issue that he did not mention the word “motherland” in the interview, while others criticized the phrase “ups and downs” as an expression of his discontent with the changes in Hong Kong.
In response, Cheung on Sunday issued a statement saying: “I am a Chinese person who loves his country and Hong Kong. As an entertainer, staying out of politics is my principle. I was born and raised in Hong Kong, and hope to grow old and die there.”
The current situation in the territory is “unsatisfactory” in comparison to its most glorious days, he said, adding that the protests and the COVID-19 pandemic had caused an economic slump and thrown the public into a panic.
As such, Hong Kong needs to be encouraged, he said.
“Hong Kong jia you” has become taboo because it was used by “someone who made a mistake,” which is incomprehensible to him, he added.
“I hope we Chinese people can be reasonable,” Cheung said, adding that he is thankful for the feedback provided by the public.
Cross-Strait Policy Association secretary-general Wang Chih-sheng (王智盛) in Taipei yesterday said that the incident is a display of Hong Kong being bullied by Beijing.
Taipei University of Marine Technology associate professor Wu Chien-chung (吳建忠) said that the “Little Pink” being infuriated with Cheung just because he did not mention the “motherland” indicates that Hong Kongers have been deprived of the freedom to not have an opinion.
TPP RALLY: The clashes occurred near the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall on Saturday at a rally to mark the anniversary of a raid on former TPP chairman Ko Wen-je People who clashed with police at a Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) rally in Taipei on Saturday would be referred to prosecutors for investigation, said the Ministry of the Interior, which oversees the National Police Agency. Taipei police had collected evidence of obstruction of public officials and coercion by “disorderly” demonstrators, as well as contraventions of the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法), the ministry said in a statement on Sunday. It added that amid the “severe pushing and jostling” by some demonstrators, eight police officers were injured, including one who was sent to hospital after losing consciousness, allegedly due to heat stroke. The Taipei
NO LIVERPOOL TRIP: Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting, who won a gold medal in the boxing at the Paris Olympics, was embroiled in controversy about her gender at that event Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting (林郁婷) will not attend this year’s World Boxing Championships in Liverpool, England, due to a lack of response regarding her sex tests from the organizer, World Boxing. The national boxing association on Monday said that it had submitted all required tests to World Boxing, but had not received a response as of Monday, the departure day for the championships. It said the decision for Lin to skip the championships was made to protect its athletes, ensuring they would not travel to the UK without a guarantee of participation. Lin, who won a gold medal in the women’s 57kg boxing
‘NOT ALONE’: A Taiwan Strait war would disrupt global trade routes, and could spark a worldwide crisis, so a powerful US presence is needed as a deterrence, a US senator said US Senator Deb Fischer on Thursday urged her colleagues in the US Congress to deepen Washington’s cooperation with Taiwan and other Indo-Pacific partners to contain the global security threat from China. Fischer and other lawmakers recently returned from an official trip to the Indo-Pacific region, where they toured US military bases in Hawaii and Guam, and visited leaders, including President William Lai (賴清德). The trip underscored the reality that the world is undergoing turmoil, and maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific region is crucial to the security interests of the US and its partners, she said. Her visit to Taiwan demonstrated ways the
The US has revoked Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) authorization to freely ship essential gear to its main Chinese chipmaking base, potentially curtailing its production capabilities at that older-generation facility. American officials recently informed TSMC of their decision to end the Taiwanese chipmaker’s so-called validated end user (VEU) status for its Nanjing site. The action mirrors steps the US took to revoke VEU designations for China facilities owned by Samsung Electronics Co and SK Hynix Inc. The waivers are set to expire in about four months. “TSMC has received notification from the US Government that our VEU authorization for TSMC Nanjing
RSS