Photo: Screenshot from the Chinese TV series Shine on Me

Vietnam has ordered Netflix to remove the Chinese television series Shine on Me from its streaming platform due to images depicting a map in accordance with China's nine-dash line in the South China Sea, according to the Bloomberg on Monday. 

A Chinese expert said on Monday that film and television productions are part of normal people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and that relevant Vietnamese authorities should handle such matters prudently by clearly distinguishing these exchanges from the South China Sea issue.

In a Saturday statement, Vietnam's Department of Cinema under the Ministry of Culture on Saturday claimed that the inspection found scenes showing the "nine-dash line" map and alleged that it "misrepresents and violates" Vietnam's national sovereignty.

"Following a written government demand, we have removed Shine on Me from Netflix in Vietnam," the streaming service said in a statement, Bloomberg reported.

The images appear in episode 25 of the series, according to the department, which gave the entertainment giant 24 hours to take the show down. Authorities reclassified the 27-episode series as category C, which bans it from distribution, citing violations of Vietnam's cinema law. It was no longer available to view online at 11 am Hanoi time Monday, Vietnam News reported on Monday.

Bloomberg describes Vietnam's operation as "sensitive," noting that "the order was made even though the map is only visible in a college lecture scene in the dramatic series."

It is worth noting that this is not the first time that Vietnam has removed or banned films, TV series and other cultural products from domestic release over issues related to maps of the South China Sea. According to Reuters, Vietnam in 2023 banned Warner Bros.' highly anticipated film Barbie from domestic distribution, and in 2022 barred Sony's action movie Uncharted for the same reason. In 2021, Netflix removed Pine Gap from its services in Vietnam following a similar complaint from the country's broadcasting authorities, CNN reported.

In recent years, an increasing number of Chinese film and TV productions have gone global and gained popularity overseas. Vietnam harbors concerns that the broadcast of such works could lead ordinary Vietnamese citizens to gain a better understanding of the fact that China holds legitimate sovereignty in the South China Sea, Gu Xiaosong, dean of the ASEAN Research Institute at Hainan Tropical Ocean University, told the Global Times on Monday.

Gu noted that in recent years, exchanges between China and Vietnam in the political, economic and people-to-people fields have continued to deepen, with bilateral relations generally maintaining positive momentum. Film and TV productions are part of normal people-to-people and cultural exchanges and should not be linked to the South China Sea issue, Gu said.

In 2023, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning made similar remarks when responding to reports that Vietnam had banned the Barbie movie over a world map that allegedly depicted China's nine-dash line in the South China Sea. 

"China's position on the South China Sea issue is clear and consistent, and that relevant countries should not conflate the issue with normal cultural exchanges," Mao said.