TAIPEI, Jan 16 – Taiwan new leader Tsai Ing-wen had been disappeared from the China’s most popular social network here today. It had been censors with the working swiftly to block any mention of the Beijing-wary politician as she stormed to victory on the island.
Meanwhile, Twitter-like Weibo network been turned up a message that read: “According to relevant laws, regulations and policies, the results for this search cannot be shown,” a signal for words blocked by China’s army of Internet gatekeepers after searching the words for “Tsai Ing-wen” and “Taiwan elections”.
Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan’s main opposition party, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), will become the island’s first female president after the ruling Kuomintang conceded defeat in polls today, as voters turned their backs on closer China ties. Support for Tsai has surged as voters have become increasingly uneasy about a recent rapprochement with China under the KMT’s Ma Ying-jeou.
“The ‘suppression’ would harm cross-strait ties in her first comments to international media following her win. Our democratic system, national identity and international space must be respected,” Tsai wasted no time in warning China, here, on Saturday.
China has some of the tightest Internet controls in the world, deleting online content it deems to be sensitive and blocking Western websites and the services of Internet giants including Facebook, Twitter and Google with the so-called “Great Firewall of China”.
Tsai’s historic victory was initially reported very briefly by the majority of Chinese news websites in the aftermath of the KMT conceding, describing her as “the leader of the Taiwan region”. The term “president” is viewed as conferring legitimacy on the island’s claim to sovereignty.
