TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s national flag was removed from a Tokyo choir competition following pressure from China, but undaunted, a Taiwanese team still won a gold medal.
The 7th Tokyo International Choir Competition was held from Friday to Sunday at Dai-ichi Seimei Hall, per CNA. In Sunday’s folk music category, eight teams competed, including three from Taiwan and two from China.
Nibun Chorus conductor Chen Chun-chih (陳俊志) wrote on Facebook that on Saturday, organizers suddenly informed them that, due to “receiving a complaint,” the Taiwan flag had to be removed. The complaint also demanded the team’s country of origin be changed to “Chinese Taipei.”
“It all happened so suddenly, a lot of questions came to mind, but we were powerless to resolve them,” he said. One choir member described receiving the notice while happily taking group photos, calling it “a bolt from the blue.”
Taiwan’s representative office in Japan said it began negotiations with the organizers Saturday night, working alongside the choir and DPP Legislator Chiu Yi-ying (邱議瑩), who was traveling with them. Japan-ROC Diet Members' Consultative Council Chairman Keiji Furuya also spoke up for Taiwan, but organizers ultimately decided to remove all national flags and relabel the Taiwanese teams as Chinese Taipei.
Chiu sponsored the Nibun Chorus' uniforms, which were printed with "Taiwan." She thanked the representative office for pushing negotiations until the competition began.
She noted the emcee was still able to mention “Taiwan” during various parts of the introduction. However, she called it deeply regrettable that a non-political music event was marred by China’s interference.
Taiwan's deputy representative to Japan, Chou Shyue-yow (周學佑), went to the venue to negotiate with organizers. Sixteen staff from the representative office also attended to show support and deter further Chinese interference.
After negotiations, the emcee repeatedly referenced Taiwan during introductions. At the event’s opening, the emcee also clarified that the competition was apolitical and that all naming was without political implication.
Although there were no national flags displayed in the venue, support for Taiwan continued. After the Nibun Chorus' performance, chants of “Taiwan, Taiwan” could be heard in the venue.
Taiwan’s top representative to Japan, Lee I-yang (李逸洋), said that for six years, Taiwanese groups had participated in the competition under the name "Taiwan." This year, however, China politicized the event, “polluting music with politics and hurting the feelings of the Taiwanese people.”
The representative office strongly condemned what it called “despicable behavior.” It also expressed deep regret over the organizers’ partial concession to China and has lodged a formal protest.
On Sunday evening, the Nibun Chorus won the gold medal with a high score of 95.9, per Liberty Times. Chiu said that Taiwanese team members and supporters could be heard shouting “Taiwan” to emphasize: “We are not Chinese Taipei, we are Taiwan!”
