Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson of Taiwan Affairs Office of State Council Photo: Taiwan Affairs Office of State Council

Commenting on the DPP authorities’ one-year “ban” on social media platform Xiaohongshu (RedNote), a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office said on Wednesday the deliberate and heavy-handed move is a clear example of “double standards” and political manipulation. 

The DPP authorities have recently announced a tentative one-year “ban” on the social media platform Xiaohongshu, citing a so-called “emergency incident related to fraud prevention.” The move has been questioned as an “illegal expansion of authority” and has triggered strong backlash on the Taiwan island. 

Taiwan region’s so-called “internal affairs department” and “mainland affairs department” have claimed that the measure constitutes a “legally based, generalized emergency and necessary response,” which is unrelated to cross-Straits policy or cross-Straits relations. 

At Wednesday’s press briefing, Zhu Fenglian, the State Council Taiwan Affairs spokesperson, refuted the DPP authorities’ explanation as notably unconvincing. 

According to reports by media outlets on the island, nearly 60,000 fraud-related cases involving Facebook were recorded locally last year, and the figure has already exceeded 30,000 this year – far surpassing the number of cases the DPP authorities have alleged to involve Xiaohongshu, Zhu said. 

Their so-called campaign against fraud is merely a pretext driven by ulterior motives, while the real aim is to pursue “Taiwan independence,” cut off channels of cross-Straits exchanges, and deprive the people of Taiwan — especially young people — of their right to information and freedom to use social media platforms.

Such egregious actions by the DPP authorities have already sparked strong dissatisfaction and opposition among Taiwan residents, particularly the younger generation, Zhu noted.

Global Times