Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has been developing a narrative that the goal of Taiwan’s defense is to protect the republic’s democracy.

There are many ways to advocate the role of national defense. It could be expressed as defending Taiwan’s sovereignty, territory and dignity, as deterring aggression, as preserving the Constitution, as protecting the economy and people’s security, or, as it is more frequently touted, as defending Taiwan’s freedom and democracy.

A Chinese dance troupe is to tour Taiwan this month, starting in Kaohsiung, with free performances open to the public. While on the surface it sounds innocuous enough, under scrutiny it reeks of Chinese pro-unification propaganda.

Following a report by the Liberty Times (the sister newspaper of the Taipei Times), which raised concerns that the shows could be a part of China’s “united front” campaign, the government banned the tour group’s leader from entering Taiwan. However, the troupe’s performers and its entourage were granted visas. While the government might be keen to appear reasonable and evenhanded, there is a strong argument for it pulling the plug on the entire event, given the number of red flags.