The Israel Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei yesterday called on 7-Eleven stores to remove products sporting what appears to be an Adolph Hitler lookalike, but the convenience store chain said it had not yet decided if it would do so.
The appeal came after key rings and magnets, featuring a Hitler-inspired cartoon figure with what appeared to be a short black moustache, emerged at several 7-Eleven outlets across the nation.
Israeli Representative to Taiwan Simona Halperin said she hoped to see the controversial items removed from the shelves.
Photo: Patrick Lin, AFP
President Chain Store Corp, which runs 7-Eleven in Taiwan, said it had not decided if it would remove the products, but denied the images were meant to represent the Nazi dictator.
“It’s not a moustache, but a nose,” a company official said, referring to the black square in the middle of the figure’s face.
On Monday, the official had described the black spot as a “tooth.”
Mark Lee, a blogger who created the cartoon figure, said on Monday the creation was indeed inspired by Hitler, but said he had no intention of promoting Nazi ideology.
In January 2000, a new theme restaurant in Taipei called The Jail caused stir by displaying pictures of Nazi concentration camps. The owner later pleaded ignorance and removed the items.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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