With a new wave of anti-Japan sentiment in China over the Japanese government’s recent move to nationalize three of the contested Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台), Taiwanese showbiz performers are shunning cooperation with Japan-based corporations in an apparent move to avoid being caught in the territorial crossfire.
The Japanese government paid ¥2.05 billion (US$26 million) for three of the islands in the chain on Sept. 11 in an effort to nationalize the archipelago, a resource-rich island group in the East China Sea claimed by Taiwan, China and Japan, which calls them the Senkaku Islands.
The move prompted an angry rebuke from the Chinese government, which accused Japan of “playing with fire,” setting aflame widespread anti-Japan demonstrations in several cities across China over the past few days.
Taiwanese supermodel and actress Lin Chi-ling (林志玲) is said to have put off a scheduled visit to Japan on Sept. 10 to promote her latest movie, Sweet Heart Chocolate (甜心巧克力), which was funded by Chinese and Japanese firms, because of the escalating tension over the island group.
Despite a previous explanation that the postponement was the result of a post-production delay, Lin’s manager, Fan Ching-mei (范清美), said on Monday that “given the current circumstances,” Lin would not fly to Japan to take part in the movie’s promotion campaign.
“She is an actress who only wants to concentrate on her work, rather than intervening in any political issues. She has not received any job offers from Japan recently and therefore has no plan to visit the country anytime soon,” Fan said.
Taiwanese actor Jerry Yan (言承旭), who has a large fan base in Japan, is in negotiations to star in a new movie and does not have any plans to visit Japan recently, Yan’s manager Chi Yi-liang (紀宜良) said.
TV idol Peter Ho (何潤東), who has starred in a number of Japanese films, also does not have plans to visit Japan in the near future, according to Ho’s agent A-ben, who said Ho had not flown to the country after a promotion event for Taiwanese idol drama, Ring Ring Bell (真心請按兩次鈴), in July.
Meanwhile, Taiwanese singer Vivian Hsu (徐若瑄), a highly recognized celebrity in Japan, who is currently in Hong Kong shooting a Japanese televised drama based on the Kindaichi Case Files (金田一少年事件簿), a popular Japanese manga series, declined to comment on the territorial row.
“She only wishes to do her work and carry out her duty as a showbiz performer, and does not want to comment on the issue at this point,” Hsu’s manager Chai Hsiao-chien (柴曉倩) said.
Despite being assigned as the Tourism Bureau’s representative to Japan in 2010, local boy band Fahrenheit (飛輪海) also appeared to be avoiding visiting Japan during the politically sensitive period.
“They do not have any scheduled visits to Japan in the near future,” said HIM International Music, the group’s record label.
Taiwanese singer Show Luo (羅志祥) also canceled two scheduled concerts to be staged in Tokyo later this month, which could have generated about NT$12 million (US$408,000) in ticket revenue, amid intensified anti-Japan sentiment across China.
“Before the issue [territorial dispute] is properly settled, I will suspend all promotional activities in Japan,” Luo said in a post on his Sina Weibo account on Monday.
The post has received more than 45,000 comments and has been shared almost 58,000 times, with most of Luo’s Chinese fans applauding him for his “guts.”
Meanwhile, Taiwanese band Mayday (五月天), who recently called off a planned concert in Xi-an, China, on Sept. 29 amid widespread anti-Japan demonstrations, called for an end to the long-running territorial disputes.
“In the face of an intensified dispute over the Diaoyu, I hope music can bring peace of mind to the people and bring the row to an end,” Mayday lead singer A-hsin (阿信) said on Monday.
In addition to Taiwanese showbiz performers, high-profile Hong Kong stars have also been affected by the sovereignty dispute.
Hong Kong superstar Tony Leung (梁朝偉) was recently lambasted by Chinese nationalists as a “traitor” for his plan to star in a Japanese film, 1905, with Japanese actress Maeda Atsuko.
Additional reporting by Chen Hui-ling, Feng Yi-en and Huang Cheng-yi
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by