Chinese tourists allegedly interrupted a protest in Taipei on Tuesday held by Hong Kongers, knocked down several flags and shouted: “Taiwan and Hong Kong belong to China.”
Hong Kong democracy activists were holding a demonstration as Tuesday was China’s National Day.
A video posted online by civic group Hong Kong Outlanders shows a couple, who are allegedly Chinese, during the demonstration.
Photo: screen grab from Radio Free Asia’s X account
“Today is China’s National Day, and I won’t allow the displaying of these flags,” the male yells in the video before pushing some demonstrators and knocking down a few flagpoles.
Radio Free Asia reported that some of the demonstrators confronted the couple, warning the man about his behavior.
“Today is to commemorate Hong Kong’s martyrs. We do not celebrate China’s National Day,” it quoted a demonstrator as saying. “We are in Taiwan, and people are free to express their opinion.”
Taiwanese independence advocate Lee Wen-pin (李文賓) and the man reportedly pushed and slapped each other.
“You cannot touch other people’s belongings... We are asking you to leave now,” Lee said, before he called the police.
The man refused to leave and kept saying that “China has sovereignty over Taiwan,” and that “Taiwan and Hong Kong belong to China.”
“Taiwan belongs to Taiwanese, and Hong Kong belongs to Hong Kongers,” the demonstrators said in response.
Later, police officers arrived at the scene and persuaded the couple to leave.
After they left the demonstration continued, joined by activists supporting freedom and democracy in Hong Kong, Tibet, Xinjiang and Southern Mongolia, and Taiwanese independence supporters.
“This should not happen in a free, democratic country. You can speak your mind if you disagree with our views, but he just barged in and started to knock down things and break them,” an event organizer who goes by the name Fu Tong (赴湯) said. “He can return to China if he believes it is fine to live without freedom, but he must not come to Taiwan and try to sabotage our freedom and democracy.”
“This incident showed that Chinese ‘little pinks’ are everywhere, trying to suppress contrary views,” Hong Kong artist Kacey Wong (黃國才) said. “But it is quite unacceptable to see that when the police arrived, the Chinese couple kept shouting that ‘Taiwan belongs to China.’ Taiwanese and Hong Kong exiles must not tolerate this kind of action.”
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) yesterday said the couple contravened the Criminal Code’s sections on “offenses against freedom of another person.”
“Therefore, I demand Taipei police crack down on this violation. The couple should be prosecuted,” Wang said. “We must take action to deal with the delusion of some Chinese who believe they have jurisdiction over Taiwan.”
Separately, DPP Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) criticized what she called the police officers’ inaction and allowing the couple to just walk away.
“This would encourage Chinese visitors to ignore Taiwan’s police and legal authorities. It is wrong,” she said.
“These people made provocative attempts against Taiwan’s democracy and rule of law, and contravened the Criminal Code,” she said. “Taipei police must investigate this incident and prosecute the offenders.”
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
RSS