The Alliance to Campaign for Rectifying the Name of Taiwan yesterday demanded that singer Chang Hui-mei (張惠妹), better known as A-mei, be removed from the nation's tourism campaign targeting Southeast Asia.
"A-mei has said she loves Taiwan at press conferences. But her attitude is subservient to China. She even said that she regretted singing the national anthem [at the 2000 presidential inauguration]. Can she really fulfill her duties as Taiwan's representative?" said alliance executive director Peter Wang (王憲極) yesterday.
Chang has come under fire in recent days for telling Chinese media that she had no political stance as an entertainer following a concert appearance in Beijing and that it was not her decision to take part in the inauguration.
Chang has been accused of acting as an independence activist by some people in China for singing the national anthem at President Chen Shui-bian's (
Fueling the dispute yesterday, Wang and Taiwan Solidarity Union Legislator Lo Chih-ming (羅志明) visited the tourism bureau in the morning to protest its decision in March to use Chang in its tourism campaign materials this summer.
Chang was sounded out by the bureau last year to be its spokesperson in its tourism campaigns for Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong because of the strength of the singer's fan bases in those territories, said Janice Lai (
The singer now has a three-year agreement with the bureau, but will be subject to a performance evaluation after one year, the bureau said.
At around that time, in July next year, bureau officials would consider the alliance's request, Lai said.
"We're asking the bureau to consider finding an artist with a more nationalist flavor to replace A-mei after the year is up," Lo said.
Lo stressed that he and the alliance were not ganging up on Chang but were instead looking out for her.
"We can't bear to see A-mei forced to choose between business and politics either," Lo said.
If Chang was slammed all over again by China for being "pro-Taiwan" because of her involvement in the bureau's tourism campaign, then not only would Chang suffer, but the nation's tourism would suffer as well, Lo said.
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