Chinese Man Banned from Taiwan for 2 Years Over "China Taiwan" Video with Five-Star Flag

The Executive Yuan's appeal decision, announced in March this year, stated that a Chinese national surnamed Liang, who applied to visit Taiwan as a Thai resident student in October last year, was denied entry for two years by the Ministry of the Interior's National Immigration Agency due to "actions that violated principles of reciprocity and dignity." The ban is effective from August 30, 2025, to August 29, 2027. Mr. Liang argued that he had called the Immigration Agency to inquire about the "actions that violated principles of reciprocity and dignity" but was not given details, and was told to recall them himself. He speculated it might be related to a travel video he posted on Xiaohongshu, but claimed it was a customary term used by people in mainland China, with no subjective intent to demean or deny. He asserted that the original disposition violated the clarity requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act, infringed upon freedom of speech, and violated the principle of proportionality. The Immigration Agency countered that in August last year, it received a public complaint that Mr. Liang had posted a travel video to Taiwan on social media, referring to it as "China Taiwan" and adding the five-star red flag in front of the text. This act, they stated, clearly maliciously undermined the dignity of the Republic of China. Later, when Mr. Liang applied to visit Taiwan again in October last year, considering his previous actions that violated principles of reciprocity and dignity, the agency denied his application for tourism and restricted his entry to Taiwan for two years, stating the details of the disposition were very clear. The Xiaohongshu account "Dr. Liang from Zhongshan Central Academy of Fine Arts" posted a travel guide to Taiwan, not only writing "China Taiwan Province" but also marking it with a five-star flag icon. The Immigration Agency pointed out that given the complex and sensitive cross-strait situation, based on public interest considerations, it must strictly adhere to the management mechanism for Chinese mainland residents entering Taiwan. Mr. Liang's actions in this case, attempting to belittle the sovereignty of the Republic of China and maliciously undermine its dignity, met the requirements of Article 2, Item 5 of the Principles for Handling Non-Permission Periods. After comprehensive consideration of factors such as maintaining national dignity, national security, and social order, the disposition means and administrative purpose were in line with the principle of proportionality. The Executive Yuan Appeal Review Committee deliberated that Mr. Liang did not deny the actions in this case, and the Immigration Agency made the disposition in accordance with the Regulations on Permission for Tourist Activities, Regulations on Entry Permits, and Principles for Handling Non-Permission Periods. There was no impropriety and no violation of the legislative intent of the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area regarding mainland residents entering Taiwan. The review committee pointed out that in recent years, the CCP, as a hostile force, has actively engaged in cognitive warfare against Taiwan to achieve unification, attempting to confuse the public's perception of friend and foe. Mr. Liang's uploading of a Taiwan travel video to a public social media site, referring to it as "China Taiwan" and adding the five-star red flag in front of the text, could be part of the CCP's united front work, easily leading to associations with the CCP's united front efforts, undermining national dignity, and violating overall interests. The review committee stated that the actions in this case constituted improper behavior that violated the principle of reciprocity and dignity, meeting the requirements of the Principles for Handling Non-Permission Periods. Therefore, the original disposition should be upheld, and the appeal was dismissed. If dissatisfied, an administrative lawsuit may be filed with the Taipei High Administrative Court within two months from the day after the decision is served. (Editor: Zhai Sijia) 1150408