"China is bullying me"... 'Miss Taiwan' breaks down in tears at beauty pageant

Organizer stops person carrying Taiwan flag on stage
Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemns, "China likely pressured"

[Asia Economy Reporter Bang Je-il] At the 'Miss Asia Global' beauty pageant held in Penang, Malaysia, the 'Miss Taiwan' was stopped just before going on stage. Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and others criticized this, saying it was "bullying by China."

According to the Taipei Times and Hong Kong Ming Pao on the 15th, Kao Man-cheng, who participated as the representative of Taiwan in the 'Miss Asia Global' beauty pageant that opened on the 10th, was scheduled to wave their respective national flags along with other contestants at the opening event of the World Innovation Technology Conference held locally on the 13th. Kao Man-cheng was stopped by the organizers just before going on stage holding the Taiwan flag.

He suddenly burst into tears when he was the only one prevented from going on stage. Karen Yu, a Taiwanese Democratic Progressive Party legislator who was present at the scene, filmed this and posted it on her Facebook.

Legislator Yu claimed that the reason the organizers stopped Kao Man-cheng was due to pressure from China.

He said, "China's bullying is everywhere and has even infiltrated such information and communication technology events," adding, "Taiwanese people present at the scene shouted slogans together to let the audience know that Miss Taiwan is also here."

Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed regret and dissatisfaction over the inappropriate decision by the event organizers.

Specifically, in a statement on the 14th, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly criticized China for "using all possible means to ostracize Taiwan at international events."

They added, "This incident shows how the Chinese Communist Party's totalitarian government continues to oppress Taiwanese people with brutal actions and forces the international community to accept their unilateral claims and lies," emphasizing, "Taiwanese people have the right to display their flag and identity internationally."