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🇹🇼 Taiwan /Culture & Society

Taiwan event features hats with Chinese Communist Party emblem

From Liberty Times · () Chinese

Translated from Chinese, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • An event organized by Taiwan's Sun Moon Lake National Scenic Area Administration featured staff wearing hats with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) emblem.
  • The administration apologized, stating a contractor mistakenly failed to remove the incorrect prop hats purchased online.
  • Officials acknowledged oversight and promised disciplinary action against those involved.

An event organized by Taiwan's Sun Moon Lake National Scenic Area Administration has sparked controversy after participants were seen wearing hats adorned with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) emblem.

The "Railway Music Carnival" held on August 8th at Checheng Station included a "one-day station master" experience where attendees could wear various hats for photos. Among these were several caps featuring the CCP's five-star emblem. Photos of people, including children, wearing these hats were shared, causing public dismay.

The contractor was too careless. As the commissioning unit, the Sun Moon Lake National Scenic Area Administration also has responsibility for inadequate on-site supervision. I will discipline the relevant personnel.

— Chen Yu-hsiuThe Director-General of the Tourism Administration addressed the incident, acknowledging the oversight and promising disciplinary action.

The administration issued an apology, explaining that a contractor had ordered two sets of hats online. The first order mistakenly included caps with the CCP emblem, which were identified and intended to be discarded. However, the contractor reportedly forgot to remove these incorrect hats before another team set up the event's props. The administration admitted to a lack of thorough on-site inspection before the event.

Chen Yu-hsiu, Director-General of the Tourism Administration, stated that the contractor was negligent and that disciplinary action would be taken against the relevant personnel within the administration for their oversight. The incident has raised concerns among scholars about the need for stricter review mechanisms for national symbols in government-organized events and outsourced activities.

The contractor informed us that they had purchased hats online twice. After the first shipment arrived, they discovered the hats had the Chinese national emblem. They immediately ordered Taiwan Railways conductor hats online again. The day before the event, the contractor gathered the event props in one place but forgot to remove the incorrectly purchased performance hats. Another team then took all the props to the site for setup.

— Sun Moon Lake National Scenic Area AdministrationThe administration provided an explanation for how the CCP emblem hats ended up at the event.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Liberty Times in Chinese. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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