Source: KMT

 

October 3, 2014

 

The Taipei-based Liberty Times cited an article in the Japanese magazine “The Diplomat,” titled “How Hong Kong’s Protests Will Shape Taiwanese Politics,” which stated the protests in Hong Kong would influence the Mainland-tilting Ma government.  In response, Charles Chen (陳以信), a KMT spokesperson, refuted the Liberty Times news story, pointing out that they had translated the Japanese article incorrectly in order to politically strike out at the Ma administration.

 

Chen added that the phrase “tilting toward the Mainland” could not be found anywhere in the entire original article.  Chen criticized the Liberty Times for deliberately mistranslating the article in order to mislead the public, striking a severe blow to the reputation of Taiwan’s press and translation profession.   Chen called on the Liberty Times to make a formal public apology to its readership.

 

Chen explained that the Japanese article only mentioned the Ma administration and cross-Strait relations twice: 1) The last sentence in the first paragraph of the article stated that “How Beijing handles the protests in the coming days will affect both cross-Strait relations and Taiwan’s domestic politics.”  2) The third from the last paragraph in the article stated “Ma has staked his political legacy on the wisdom of improving ties with China.”  Neither time did the writer criticize the Ma administration for “leaning toward Mainland China.”  Chen questioned where the Liberty Times found the phrase “leaning toward Mainland China.”  Chen called on the Liberty Times to provide an explanation to its readership and take full responsibility for its deceitful translation.  

 

Chen added that the article pointed out that both the KMT and the DPP supported Hong Kong’s pursuit of democracy and called on Beijing to restrain itself in dealing with the protests in Hong Kong.  

 

However, the Japanese writer of the article did make one mistake.  The writer apparently thought that Chen Wei-ting (陳為廷), a leader of Taiwan’s March/April Sunflower Student Movement, had lodged a protest at Beijing’s Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office whereas in fact Chen had done so in Taipei. 【In fact, it was the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Taipei.】

 

KMT spokesperson Charles Chen reiterated the KMT’s concerns about the situation in Hong Kong, and stated that the KMT hoped that the Mainland would restrain itself in dealing with the protests in Hong Kong and resolve the incident peacefully in the end.  As everyone in Taiwan is full of concerns about the situation in Hong Kong, Charles Chen called on certain local media outlets and political figures of the opposition parties not to use the protests in Hong Kong to attack the Ma administration or take political advantage of the Hong Kong people’s passion for democracy.