China's Taiwan evacuation gambit fuels identity backlash
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- China Eastern Airlines flew over 70 Taiwanese travelers stranded in Turkey for five days to Shanghai from Istanbul on March 10, where Chinese state media interviewed the arrivals and one called it his "motherland" on camera.
- Taiwan's MOFA said it had actively assisted thousands of citizens returning home and advised them not to accept Beijing's help; Beijing fired back by calling Taipei's accusations "shameless" slander.
- Public anger in Taiwan sharply contrasted Premier Cho Jung-tai's private charter flight to Japan to attend a baseball game — a trip that was also the first by an incumbent premier to Japan since Taiwan severed diplomatic ties in 1972.
- Taiwan expressed gratitude to Japan for evacuating two Taiwanese citizens from Saudi Arabia on a chartered flight on March 14, calling it "a sincere friendship of mutual support in times of emergency."
- Taiwanese officials warned citizens against using Mainland Travel Permits to register for evacuation as Chinese nationals, saying doing so could "label them as having close ties with Iran" and jeopardize their safety.
- The 2018 Typhoon Jebi parallel saw some Taiwanese travelers seek help from the Chinese Consulate in Osaka, fueling online fury that contributed to the suicide of TECO Osaka director Su Chii-cherng; a Control Yuan report later pointed to Beijing-spread misinformation.
Why it matters: The episode amplifies Beijing's narrative that the DPP cannot protect its citizens, while the backlash — including comparisons to Premier Cho's leisure flight to Japan — reflects the very identity anxieties Taipei seeks to dispel. The 2018 Osaka parallel ended with a consular official's suicide, showing how public fury over consular failures can escalate fatally.
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