China has pressured Taiwanese rock band Mayday to make pro-China comments ahead of next month’s elections, according to sources with direct knowledge of the situation and a security note reviewed by Reuters.
The Chinese National Radio and Television Administration had asked Mayday to publicly voice support for Beijing’s claims that Taiwan is part of China and to join China’s “media propaganda on Taiwan,” an internal Taiwanese security note says.
The note from earlier this month cited intelligence on Chinese government activities gathered by Taiwanese authorities.
Photo courtesy of B’in Music
Mayday is among the most successful Taiwanese bands in China, a market that has become increasingly challenging for Taiwanese celebrities as Beijing steps up its political pressure to assert its sovereignty claims.
Two Taiwanese security officials looking into the matter said that to pressure the rock stars, Chinese authorities earlier this month announced an investigation into Mayday, following allegations on Chinese social media that the band had lip-synched during one of their concerts in China.
Mayday’s management company, B’in Music, did not respond to requests for comment.
B’in Music has previously denied allegations of lip-synching during the band’s tour last month in China, where the practice is prohibited.
The Chinese Publicity Department, which oversees the radio and television administration, and China’s Taiwan Affairs Office said it is “fake news from start to finish.”
A source with direct knowledge of the situation, who requested anonymity, said that Chinese authorities asked the band to provide unspecified “political service,” but the rock stars did not agree to the request.
In response, authorities threatened the band with the lip-synching probe and a fine, the person said.
“They will have to pay if they do not cooperate,” the person said.
The investigation’s findings and any penalties for Mayday have not yet been made public.
The two Taiwanese officials said the campaign was led by the publicity department in a move to sway voters ahead of the Jan. 13 presidential and legislative elections.
By doing so, Chinese authorities believe they could “sway the youth vote in Taiwan,” one of the officials said.
They described the scale of the cross-department campaign against Mayday as “unprecedented,” which involved coverage on the lip-synching allegations by the People’s Daily, state broadcaster China Central Television and Xinhua news agency.
Straits Exchange Foundation spokeswoman Tsai Meng-chun (蔡孟君) yesterday said that the foundation is “extremely unhappy” that anyone engaging across the Taiwan Strait would be subject to political pressure, adding that such actions are detrimental to cross-strait exchanges.
Vincent Chao (趙怡翔), spokesman for the Democratic Progressive Party’s presidential candidate, Vice President William Lai (賴清德), said that China does not even spare musicians.
As election day approaches, Chinese interference is to intensify, he said, calling on the opposition to stand together in condemnation.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential campaign spokesperson Wang Ming-hsu (王敏旭) said the campaign “strongly condemns” China’s behavior, if it is true, and called on Chinese authorities to clarify the matter.
Mayday is a band enjoyed by Mandarin speakers across generations, Wang said, adding that China should not force musicians or artists to express a political stance.
Tai Yu-wen (戴于文), spokesperson for the Taiwan People’s Party campaign, agreed that politics should not interfere with culture, and condemned Chinese election interference as not conducive to cross-strait exchanges.
Additional reporting by Chen Yu-fu, Chen Yun, Hsu Chuo-hsun and Huang Ching-hsuan
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