MCLC: Republic of Taiwan passports

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Republic of Taiwan passports
From: Kevin Carrico <>
Source: Shanghaiist (8/12/15)
Personalized 'Republic of Taiwan' passport stickers stir controversy
By Dan Cunningham
A designer from Taichung created a set of stickers that allows supporters of Taiwan independence to turn their Republic of China passports into Republic of Taiwan passports, Hong Kong Free Press reports.
Taiwan has been known as the Republic of China (ROC) since Chiang Kai-shek arrived with the KMT party in 1948. Although there are Taiwanese nationals that still believe in retaking China, many young people see the island as an independent country.
By creating the stickers, designer Denis Chen aims to help redefine Taiwan's national identity. He was inspired by a friend who replaced the word “China” on his Taiwanese passport cover and the simplified Chinese characters for Taiwan with the traditional characters. His friend had managed to enter Sydney without any issue. Chen thought that a sticker campaign would create an exciting “cultural shock” for many Taiwanese.
Chen's stickers are not dissimilar to a Taiwanese Independence Party (DPP) campaign in 2012, when it distributed 10,000 stickers saying “Taiwan is my country”. The DPP campaign was launched in response to the new issue Chinese passports, of May 2012, which cited Taiwan and the South China sea as territories of the PRC.
The online debate over the stickers got the attention of some pro-China commenters, who argued, “Do you think the stickers will turn Taiwan into a real country? If China and Taiwan went into war, would people like you dare to fight on the front line?” and, “Please respect the passport of your own country, so that people from other countries will respect you.”
Chen responded with a new set of stickers reading, “Mind the fragile Chinese hearts—handle with care.” These now come free with the passport stickers.
by denton.2 at osu.edu on August 13, 2015
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