Taiwanese actress Vivian Hsu (徐若瑄), who was in tears following a row in which members of Taiwan’s delegation to the Tokyo International Film Festival were unable to walk the “green carpet” because of Chinese opposition, quickly became the subject of a spat between fans on both sides of the Taiwan Strait who have split into pro-Hsu and anti-Hsu camps.
Having wept openly at the opening ceremony, Hsu made several entries on her microblog to express her frustration afterward. Hsu said she “wanted to cry but had no tears left” and that “some things that happen just can’t be helped.”
Taiwanese actress Shu Qi (舒淇) attempted to comfort Hsu, saying: “There are too many things we’d like to solve but can’t. If you’re tired, go to sleep. Your health, at least, is one thing you can make sure of.”
Controversy brewed over Hsu’s tears as Chinese and Taiwanese fans argued it out in comments posted on her blog. The pro-Hsu netizens sympathized with her and other members of the Taiwanese delegation for their frustration, while the other camp accused the actress of playing to the cameras for publicity.
The controversy also drew attention on China’s Web portal Baidu, with more than 80 percent of Chinese posters saying they would boycott any performance by Hsu in China. Some Chinese posters even blamed the festival’s Japanese hosts for the incident.
“It’s the Japanese up to their tricks again, creating divisions between Taiwan and mainland China,” one poster said, while another commented: “The Japanese are stirring up trouble on purpose, but the Taiwanese are dancing to their tune.”
Some even suggested that the argument over what name the Taiwanese delegation would use had something to do with the territorial dispute between China and Japan over the Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台) and that Taiwan was acting like a gun in Japan’s hand.
As the Taiwanese delegation was unable to walk the green carpet at the event’s opening ceremony due to vehement opposition by the Chinese delegation over the delegation’s use of the name “Taiwan” rather than “Chinese Taipei” or “Taiwan, China,” Taiwanese actor Alec Su (蘇有朋), who starred in the Chinese movie Love Song of Kangding (康定情歌), was criticized for “putting fame before country” by performing the film’s theme song during “China Night” on Monday evening.
Su may well have known he was the only Taiwanese performer that night, as he looked distinctly uncomfortable when he realized Taiwanese journalists were present. He decided not to attend the press conference that followed, citing a “stomach ache.”
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
Eleven people, including actor Darren Wang (王大陸), were taken into custody today for questioning regarding the evasion of compulsory military service and document forgery, the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. Eight of the people, including Wang, are suspected of evading military service, while three are suspected of forging medical documents to assist them, the report said. They are all being questioned by police and would later be transferred to the prosecutors’ office for further investigation. Three men surnamed Lee (李), Chang (張) and Lin (林) are suspected of improperly assisting conscripts in changing their military classification from “stand-by
LITTORAL REGIMENTS: The US Marine Corps is transitioning to an ‘island hopping’ strategy to counterattack Beijing’s area denial strategy The US Marine Corps (USMC) has introduced new anti-drone systems to bolster air defense in the Pacific island chain amid growing Chinese military influence in the region, The Telegraph reported on Sunday. The new Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) Mk 1 is being developed to counter “the growing menace of unmanned aerial systems,” it cited the Marine Corps as saying. China has constructed a powerful defense mechanism in the Pacific Ocean west of the first island chain by deploying weapons such as rockets, submarines and anti-ship missiles — which is part of its anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy against adversaries — the
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