Taiwan Republic’ passport stickers cause a stink in China

An original Taiwanese passport (L) and modified documents

台湾护照原样（左）和加贴纸后的护照（右）

The news that Taiwan’s parliament has effectively authorised travellers to attach "Taiwan Republic" stickers to their passports has sparked heated discussion in mainland China.

台湾“立法院”授权旅客在护照上贴“台湾国”贴纸在中国大陆引发热议。

Parliament decided on 6 April to lift the punishments for Taiwan passport holders who "add, modify or delete markings" from their travel documents.

台湾“立法院”于4月6日通过一项决议，对在旅行证件“删涂改或加盖图戳”的做法不再给予惩罚。

The controversial stickers, which replace "Republic of China" with "Republic of Taiwan", became a popular trend when they launched in August last year.

这一备受争议的“台湾国”贴纸，在去年8月推出，被大众贴在“中华民国”护照封面，成为一种流行的趋势。

However, China’s government sees them as a symbol of Taiwanese independence and has refused entry to passport holders who sport them.

中国政府将其视为“台独”的象征，并拒绝持贴纸护照者入境。

During the parliamentary session that saw the punishments overturned, the government warned holders that they must still "bear the risks" of having such stickers on their passports.

“立法院”推翻这则处罚后，政府警告说，他们仍然必须对护照上贴这种贴纸“承担风险”。

A number of Taiwanese travellers have been denied entry into China and other countries as a result of the stickers.

因为贴纸的缘故，一些台湾旅客被拒绝入境中国大陆。

The Macau Daily Times reported in February that 15 Taiwanese citizens had been refused entry into the special administrative region of China, as a result of the "politically controversial and sensitive" stickers.

《澳门日报》二月份报道，15名台湾公民因为“政治争议和敏感”贴纸的缘故被拒绝进入中国的澳门特别行政区。

The same month, two Taiwanese travellers were denied entry into Hong Kong "on the grounds that their passports had been altered without permission" according to independent news website Hong Kong Free Press.

同一个月，两名台湾游客被拒绝进入香港，“理由是他们的护照被擅自更改”，据独立新闻网站香港新闻自由网报道。

In December, three travellers were denied entry into Singapore.

十二月，三名旅客被拒绝入境新加坡。

Following the Taiwanese move to authorise the stickers, Chinese state-run national newspaper Global Times warns that travellers may be denied entry further afield.

台湾授权贴纸的使用后，中国官方报纸《环球时报》警告说，旅客必将在世界四处碰壁。

"The mainland’s influence is much bigger than Taiwan’s," it says in an editorial. "As long as the mainland is willing, it is not hard to stonewall those with the ’sticker passports’ at immigration control points everywhere in the world."

“大陆的影响比台湾大得多，”这篇社论说，“只要中国愿意，在世界各地边检处对“贴纸护照”设置障碍不是难事。”

Chinese state media have condemned the ruling that the stickers are no longer deemed to "add, modify or delete markings" from official travel documents.

中国官方媒体谴责在官方旅行文件 “添加，修改或删除标记”不再受到惩罚的规定。

The overseas edition of government mouthpiece People’s Daily warns that authorisation of the stickers may lead to other forms of rebellion.

政府喉舌《人民日报》海外版警告授权贴纸的使用可能会导致其他形式的反叛。

"If Taiwan allows its passport covers to be ’changed’, will it allow people to change their identity cards, driving licence, marriage certificate or ’legal declarations’?" it asks.

“如果台湾允许其护照封面被‘改变’，那么它也允许人们改变身份证，驾驶执照，结婚证书或‘合法声明’？”文章说。

"How will documents issued by Taiwan remain authoritative? How can we trust it if it is allowing people to change the ’country’? Is this a game of the ’Legislative Yuan’ or an ’asylum for the insane’?"

“台湾的文件如何保持权威呢？如果它允许人们改变‘国家’，我们如何才能相信它？这是“立法院”还是“精神病院”的游戏？

English-language newspaper China Daily similarly warned that the stickers will result in "more Taiwanese compatriots bringing trouble and controversy".

英文报纸《中国日报》同样警告，这些贴纸会为“更多的台湾同胞带来麻烦和争议”。

It said that the ruling "only further poisons trust across the Taiwan Straits".

它说，这项决议“只会进一步毒害台湾海峡两岸间的信任”。

Social media users on the popular Sina Weibo microblog are worried about the ruling, with many saying the news is "laughable" and that holders of such stickers have a "death wish".

新浪微博用户为这项决议担心，有许多人说这则消息很“可笑”，用这样贴纸的人“找死”。

"The international community knows that Taiwan is a province of the mainland, those still saying that Taiwan is a country are shameless," says ’Xu Xiaose’.

“国际社会知道台湾是中国的一个省，那些仍然认为台湾是一个国家的人是无耻的，”网民“徐萧瑟”说。

"This is Tsai’s masterpiece", one user says, suggesting that the stickers are part of a subtle campaign by president-elect Tsai Ing-wen to garner support for Taiwanese independence.

“这是蔡英文的杰作”，一位用户说，贴纸是总统当选人蔡英文争取“台独”支持的微妙政治的一部分。

Another user says it is an example of Tsai using "more trickery", as she has not made clear whether or not she recognises that Taiwan is an independent country.

另一个用户说这又是一个“耍花招”的例子，她还没有明确表示是否认为台湾是一个独立的国家。

"Sooner or later, the Taiwanese will have to pay a price for their choice," adds ’Shaowei Guancha’.

“台湾人民迟早会为自己的选择付出代价，”网名“稍微观察”说。

完成阅读

来源:BBC爱语吧作者:Sylvia