Fans of Taiwanese pop singer Chang Hui-mei (
Chang was forced to cancel a performance in China on Saturday night due to a protest by students from Zhejiang University (
Chang was previously blacklisted by China for singing the national anthem at President Chen Shui-bian's (
Fans, angry with Chinese opposition to Chang, unleashed anti-China sentiment on chatrooms and discussion boards online yesterday, some calling for boycotts and other saying that A-mei should just forget about China and focus on singing in Taiwan.
Other fans, however, argued back that Saturday's situation had nothing to do with Chinese entertainers and that they should be left alone.
On her return to Taiwan Sunday night, Chang was low-key about the cancelation, saying that she was saddened by the Chinese response and that she was just trying to fulfill her obligations as an entertainer.
Chang, who has other performances planned for China this summer, said on Sunday that she plans to keep to schedule.
Calls to Chang's record company yesterday were met with the terse reply that "everything has already been said."
Politicians from different parties also voiced their opinions yesterday.
The concert cancellation was an uncalled for political move, said People First Party lawmaker Sheu Yuan-kuo (許淵國). Chang's performance at Chen's 2000 inauguration was the highest honor that could be granted a musician, and has nothing to do with Taiwan's independence, he added.
Democratic Progressive Party caucus Director-General Tsai Huang-liang (
Also see story:
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
UPDATED FORECAST: The warning covered areas of Pingtung County and Hengchun Peninsula, while a sea warning covering the southern Taiwan Strait was amended The Central Weather Administration (CWA) at 5:30pm yesterday issued a land warning for Typhoon Usagi as the storm approached Taiwan from the south after passing over the Philippines. As of 5pm, Usagi was 420km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip, with an average radius of 150km, the CWA said. The land warning covered areas of Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春), and came with an amended sea warning, updating a warning issued yesterday morning to cover the southern part of the Taiwan Strait. No local governments had announced any class or office closures as of press time last night. The typhoon
DISCONTENT: The CCP finds positive content about the lives of the Chinese living in Taiwan threatening, as such video could upset people in China, an expert said Chinese spouses of Taiwanese who make videos about their lives in Taiwan have been facing online threats from people in China, a source said yesterday. Some young Chinese spouses of Taiwanese make videos about their lives in Taiwan, often speaking favorably about their living conditions in the nation compared with those in China, the source said. However, the videos have caught the attention of Chinese officials, causing the spouses to come under attack by Beijing’s cyberarmy, they said. “People have been messing with the YouTube channels of these Chinese spouses and have been harassing their family members back in China,”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said there are four weather systems in the western Pacific, with one likely to strengthen into a tropical storm and pose a threat to Taiwan. The nascent tropical storm would be named Usagi and would be the fourth storm in the western Pacific at the moment, along with Typhoon Yinxing and tropical storms Toraji and Manyi, the CWA said. It would be the first time that four tropical cyclones exist simultaneously in November, it added. Records from the meteorology agency showed that three tropical cyclones existed concurrently in January in 1968, 1991 and 1992.