Japanese journalist attacked in Taiwan alleges media diversion tactics

Japanese journalist and Indo-Pacific Strategy Think Tank CEO Akio Yaita reported being attacked by a Chinese national in Taiwan. The incident escalated when former legislator Kuan-Ting Liu questioned Yaita's nationality, academic credentials, work history, and the source of his think tank's funding during a live broadcast, prompting Yaita to file a lawsuit.

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These people are doing this, mainly to shift everyone's attention away from the real issue.

Yaita observed a shift in focus among some media figures, particularly those associated with the KMT (Kuomintang) party. Instead of discussing the attack, they began criticizing him, questioning his qualifications and suggesting his past criticisms of China made him deserving of the assault. Yaita views this as a deliberate attempt to distract from the core issue: an organized violent attack on a citizen living and working in Taiwan by an external hostile force, potentially aimed at suppressing freedom of speech.

He pointed out that Beijing's Taiwan Affairs Office immediately characterized the attack as stemming from "righteous indignation," seemingly providing a motive for the assailant. Yaita argues that this narrative is being amplified by some media to rationalize the violence and stigmatize the victim, while also accusing the ruling DPP (Democratic Progressive Party) government of overstating the incident's significance.

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The real issue is never 'Who is Akio Yaita?', but that a citizen living normally on Taiwan's soil has been subjected to a planned violent attack by an external hostile force.

Yaita stressed that the real issue is not who he is, but that a citizen exercising freedom of expression in Taiwan has been subjected to a planned violent attack from abroad. He questioned the motives of those urging against a thorough investigation and downplaying the event. Yaita believes that if Taiwanese society accepts the logic of "blaming the victim," it erodes the safety of all residents, as anyone could become a target for their speech.

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Beijing's Taiwan Affairs Office immediately characterized the case as 'out of righteous indignation,' and concluded the suspect's motive.

He concluded that a democratic society must protect its citizens from the threat of violence due to their expressed views. The true concern, Yaita asserted, should be ensuring that everyone living in Taiwan can speak freely without fear of reprisal, which is the fundamental aspect of this incident that warrants societal attention.

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If Taiwanese society accepts the logic of 'examining the victim,' and no longer pursues the mastermind behind the violence, and no longer considers 'how to prevent similar incidents from happening again?', then yesterday it was me who was threatened, and tomorrow it could be anyone living in Taiwan.