Brian Hioeby Brian Hioe
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Photo Credit: Makoto Lin/Presidential Office/CC BY 2.0
REPORTS INDICATE that Taiwan’s top male table tennis player, Lin Yun-ju, was “manipulated” into wearing a red scarf and singing a United Front-linked song during a trip to China. The incident occurred at a publicity event at an elementary school in Zouping City. Lin was present in China to play at the China Table Tennis Super League tournament in Shandong, playing as part of the Shandong Weiqiao Table Tennis Club. Lin’s teammates, who are Chinese, were also present at the event.
Lin was apparently unaware of the political context of wearing a red scarf, a symbol of the CCP’s Young Pioneers. Media reports cite that Lin felt that there was something wrong with what had occurred and informed authorities.
In response to photos of Lin wearing a red scarf circulating online, there was initially speculation as to whether Lin might face punishment from Taiwanese sporting authorities or the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC). In particular, Article 33-1 of the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area bans Taiwanese from “any form of cooperative activity with the agencies, institutions or organizations of the Mainland Area which are political parties, the military, the administration or of any political nature.”
The MAC has become increasingly combative as of late against instances of Taiwanese entertainers who share posts by Chinese state-run media outlets during Chinese military exercises directed at Taiwan, investigating whether they hold Chinese national IDs. Taiwanese law, which predates the Lai administration but was not previously stringently applied, bans Taiwanese from simultaneously holding Chinese and Taiwanese national IDs. Such individuals must forfeit their Taiwanese nationality if they wish to have Chinese national IDs or household registration. Such entertainers have also been investigated as to whether their actions are carried out in deliberate coordination with Chinese authorities.
As such, speculation online was that Lin would be penalized under Article 33-1 of the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area, that he might be prevented from returning to Taiwan, or that he would lose his Taiwanese nationality. Pan-blue media outlets were quick to jump onto such claims.
The MAC’s narrative has been to defend Lin, however, with the claim that Lin was manipulated into these actions. While it is unclear or not what Lin’s motivations were or to what extent he understood his actions, it proves noteworthy that this is what the MAC has at least claimed publicly.
Namely, if Lin was deliberately targeted, efforts by the Chinese government were probably to set the MAC in a bind in which it might have to go after Taiwan’s top-ranked male table tennis player. Certainly, if that were to take place, that would be a further blow to Taiwan’s prestige, apart from his wearing a red scarf and singing United Front songs.
It is to be seen whether China attempts such tactics with other high-profile Taiwanese athletes, particularly those who travel to China for competitions or exchanges. Yet this seems likely. Chinese United Front efforts may particularly seek to bait the MAC into reprisals against high-profile individuals, noting that the MAC has become increasingly assertive regarding affronts to Taiwanese sovereignty from individuals who otherwise represent Taiwan on the international stage.
If anything, sports has often been a matter of political contestation with regard to Taiwan’s national status. The recent controversy regarding Lin is not even the first controversy regarding clothing. In 2022, during the Tokyo Olympics, Taiwanese speed skater Huang Yu-ting posted a photo of herself wearing the uniform of the Chinese Olympic team while practicing. Huang faced widespread public criticism, since it was seen as unlikely that Huang would be unaware of the connotations of posting a photo of herself wearing a Chinese Olympic uniform. Though Huang initially shrugged off this backlash, posting a clip from a Taylor Swift song with the lyrics “And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate” as part of its lyrics, further backlash eventually led her to delete her Instagram account. Other instances of controversy return to Chinese backlash against athletes who emphasize that they are from Taiwan, or when China claims sporting victories by Taiwanese athletes as victories of its own.