OLYMPICS/MOFA condemns grabbing of poster from Taiwanese fan at Olympics

Taipei/Paris, Aug. 3 (CNA) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) on Saturday condemned an incident in which a Taiwan-shaped poster that expressed support for the country was forcefully snatched from a Taiwanese fan during an Olympic badminton match the previous day.

In a statement, MOFA said it condemns violence and described the grabbing of the poster as "despicable," an infringement of the Olympic spirit and freedom of speech.

The ministry did not mention the individual's identity but added that its representative office in France was aware of the matter.

François Wu (吳志中), who heads the office, has met with the Taiwanese female victim and will assist in helping report the incident to the French police, it said.

Meanwhile, MOFA said it also asked the office to lodge a complaint with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) over the "use of excessive force" after another Taiwanese fan had a towel with the English word "Taiwan" imprinted on it confiscated by security staff at the same badminton event.

Both incidents happened on Friday, when Lee Yang (李洋) and Wang Chi-lin (王齊麟) faced off against their Danish opponents in the men's doubles semifinals in Paris.

The towel with the imprinted Taiwan logo was a celebratory souvenir sold to the public after Lee and Wang won the men's doubles gold at the Tokyo Olympics held in 2021.

Separate videos showing the unidentified individual wearing a pink shirt, who is believed to be a Chinese national, snatching the Taiwan-shaped poster that read "台灣加油" in Chinese, which means "Go Taiwan," and the Olympic security staffer who forcefully confiscated the Taiwan-worded towel have since gone viral on social media.

Echoing MOFA, Taiwan's representative office in France later told CNA that it condemns violence and the case involving the Taiwanese woman has been reported to the French police.

Concerning the confiscation of the towel, the office said it is working with the Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee to file a complaint through various channels, including the IOC and the French foreign ministry.

According to the IOC's website, regulations currently stipulate that spectators are forbidden from carrying flags that do not legally represent any participating country, nor can they carry any type of flag or banner exceeding 2 meter in length and 1 meter in width.

Although the Republic of China flag is prohibited, there is no explicit ban on items that have the word "Taiwan" printed on them, the office explained.

Asked why the incidents happened, the office told CNA that it did not rule out the possibility that the security staff at the event may not have been clear about the regulations.

Yang Chih-yun (楊芷芸), the supporter whose Taiwan-shaped poster was snatched, expressed regret at the incident.

Yang, who is currently studying in France, said she was reminded by security staff at the entrance that posters or banners with certain slogans are prohibited from being carried in, but still let her through because hers did not have the ROC flag on them.

During the Lee-Wang match, the Taiwanese student recalled that whenever she cheered "Taiwan Go," the man in pink t-shirt shouted "Chinese Taipei" or "Taipei team."

She was also aware about the towel confiscation involving the other Taiwanese supporter at the same event.

"It's sad, but at least this time the world can really see with their own eyes that this kind of thing happens to Taiwan at sports venues," the Taiwanese said.

Taiwanese athletes are currently only allowed to compete in the Olympics under the name "Chinese Taipei."