MOFA slams China for sabotaging Taiwanese art expo in Kazakhstan

Taipei, Sept. 21 (CNA) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) on Sunday "strongly condemned" China's interference resulting in the cancellation of an art exhibition by Taiwanese artists in Kazakhstan's Central State Museum.

Curated by Taiwanese artist and curator Wang Chun-chi (王俊琪) and featuring eight Taiwanese artists including Chen Yung-hsien (陳永賢), "Shifting Grounds: Dissonance, Memory, and Landscape as a Site of Becoming" was originally scheduled for Sept. 12 to Oct. 1, the ministry said in a statement.

The museum abruptly canceled the exhibition and terminated the contract due to a "one-month renovation" starting on Sept. 11.

Upon receiving the news on Sept. 10, Taiwan's representative office in Moscow tried to get the museum to change its mind, but the museum apologized and said Taiwan's exhibition was a last-minute addition and caused a scheduling conflict, the statement said.

Taiwanese art news outlet ARTouch reported that a fashion show was held at the museum one week after the cancellation of the exhibition, calling into question the museum's renovation claim.

MOFA said it was "clearly unreasonable" that the exhibition was suddenly canceled due to a renovation after Taiwanese artists had already arrived in Kazakhstan.

The excuse given by the museum indicated "obvious traces" of China's interference, MOFA said, though it did not provide any specific evidence to support the claim.

The ministry "strongly condemned" China's interference in private artistic and cultural activities, which do not involve politics.

It also said the museum's "bad decision" to "submit" to China's "intimidation" was "regrettable."

MOFA did not indicate, however, whether it would try to recover the exhibition's expenses from Kazakhstan and the museum.

The ministry said that in the face of China's continuous and widespread suppression of Taiwan, it remains committed to defending Taiwan's international standing and will continue to actively expand international exchanges and cooperation across all fields.