Pan-green camp lawmakers on Sunday accused a cross-strait baseball tournament of being part of China’s “united front” strategy after a banner that read “both sides of the [Taiwan] Strait are one family” was hung on the field at the opening game of the finals of the first Cross-Strait Student Baseball League tournament hosted in Shenzhen on Friday.
Although the baseball tournament ended on Sunday, the Taiwanese teams were scheduled to visit Tencent Holdings Ltd, Dajiang Innovation Technology Co, Shenzhen Talent Park, Shenzhen Bay Sports Center and other places yesterday and today, the Web site of the Shenzhen People’s Government said, adding that the host organization also arranged a photography exhibition, welcoming party, forum, cross-strait school exchange and other activities.
New Power Party (NPP) Legislator Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明) said that the baseball association should bear the brunt of the blame for letting Taiwanese players become political tools in China’s “united front” strategy and for giving Chinese media an opportunity to promote the “both sides of the Strait are one family” view without restraint.
China is not a top-tier nation in baseball and positive effects on Taiwanese baseball from the tournament would be limited, Hsu said.
The Chinese Taipei Baseball Association should not go along with China, he said, adding that the Sports Administration should investigate whether the association accepted financial aid and whether it reported issues to the government in advance.
“The government should clearly standardize the guidelines for cross-strait sports exchanges,” Hsu added.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lin Chun-hsien (林俊憲) said the tournament was a fake exchange as part of China’s “united front” strategy.
Lin echoed Hsu’s criticism of the association, saying that it is incapable of maintaining the basic dignity of Taiwanese.
After Taiwanese human rights advocate Lee Ming-che (李明哲) was sentenced to five years in prison, “who would still want to be ‘one family’ with China?” Lin asked.
The tournament is considered a cross-strait technical exchange, Chinese Taipei Baseball Association secretary-general Kung Fu-hao said, adding that it aims to mutually improve skills and does not involve politics.
Taiwan and China held an exchange tournament eight years ago, Kung said.
Because the two sides speak the same language and Taiwan is more skilled in baseball, China hopes to use this tournament to improve, he said.
Because the US and Japan are more skilled, Taiwan often competes against the two nations to identify its weaknesses, Kung said, adding that the cross-strait tournament had a similar starting point.
According to Chinese media, the event was attended by 785 athletes, referees and government officials.
Apart from China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Minister Zhang Zhijun (張志軍), Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Vice Chairman Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) and Taitung County Commissioner Justin Huang (黃健庭) of the KMT also attended the opening ceremony, the reports said.
Zhang was quoted as saying that he hopes the tournament can be organized every year.
The 16 participating Taiwanese schools — consisting of colleges, high schools, middle schools and elementary schools — included Chung Yuan Christian University, Shih Hsin University, National Taiwan University and National Pingtung University of Science and Technology.
Chinese media reported that the tournament was organized by the Cross-Straits Baseball Exchange and Cooperation Committee, which was coestablished by the Federation of University Sports of Beijing Baseball and Softball Branch and the “Chinese Taipei Baseball Association” (中華台北棒球協會).
The “Chinese Taipei Baseball Association” was also a cosponsor in name, Chinese media reports added.
Hsu added that the name Chinese media used to refer to Taiwan’s baseball association was not its official Chinese name, which literally reads “Baseball Association of the Republic of China” (中華民國棒球協會).
Kung said that the tournament followed the Olympic model.
Additional reporting by Lo Chih-ming
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as
RSS