A Taiwanese who made a “V” sign on Tiananmen Square in Beijing was detained for three days by the Chinese Public Security Bureau, Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) Secretary-General Luo Wen-jia (羅文嘉) said on Friday, advising the public not to visit China if it is not necessary.
Luo issued the call in response to media queries about the outlawed “Night Ride to Kaifeng” movement in China, initiated by university students on Friday last week with reportedly more than 200,000 participants.
Young people are creative and tend to express their opinions about society in creative ways, and the night ride to Kaifeng is an example of that, he said.
Photo: Screengrab from Huang Wei-wei’s Instagram
However, the Chinese government arbitrarily banned the movement over fears that such gatherings could be used to express dissent — which would not happen in a democratic country, Luo said, adding that it is a good opportunity to remind young Taiwanese about the importance of democracy.
The SEF has recently handled a case where a young Taiwanese was arrested and detained for three days by public security officers in China after she made a “V” sign on Tiananmen Square that covered up the Chinese characters on the entrance to the Forbidden City to say “Long Live the Republic of China” (中華民國萬歲) rather than “Long Live the People’s Republic of China” (中華人民共和國萬歲), Luo said.
The young Taiwanese has been released and returned to Taiwan, he added.
Taking photos while covering the words on the archway with a “V” sign has recently become a trend among young Taiwanese, but they should be careful, as China is not a democratic society, Luo said.
Luo cited another case where a Taiwanese visiting Xinjiang was arrested and detained by local public security officers for using a drone to film the natural scenery.
As China is not a democracy and different to what people are used to in Taiwan, many social behaviors that are regular and normal in Taiwan might not be allowed there, he said.
Taiwanese should be aware not to visit such an unstable and risky society if not necessary, Luo added.
Additional reporting by CNA
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