On election day, Taiwan's president-elect Tsai Ing-wen commented on an ongoing situation surrounding a K-pop girl group member.
On Sunday, prior to the final count, Tsai addressed a video published by Korea's JYP Entertainment on Friday. In the video, TWICE's Chou Tzuyu apologized for appearing anti-mainland China and allegedly a supporter of the Taiwanese independence movement.
Tsai, who is set to be first-ever female President of Taiwan, told Taiwanese journalists that she felt Chou had been coerced into making the statement.
"I believe everyone feels hurt and angry to see that Chou was forced to do what she was made to do," Tsai said, according to a South China Morning Post report.
"This has offended and hurt the feelings of the people of Taiwan. Everyone should unite to voice their belief to the world that no national of the Republic of China should be [attacked] for identifying with her country."
Because the controversy erupted ahead of Taiwanese voters heading to the polls, Tzuyu became a major topic amongst Taiwanese citizens.
Taiwanese president My Ying-jeou also addressed Tzuyu's contriversy.
"Citizens who love the Republic of China are never pro-independence supporters," he said. "We should all support them for loving the Republic of China."
In an earlier statement, Ma said that he "regrets the incident happened," and said that he sympathized with Tzuyu.
Taiwan, or the Republic of China, is represented international by mainland China, or the People's Republic of China.
Tzuyu became part of Chinese-Taiwanese international relations earlier this month, when anti-independence singer Huang An denounced the 16-year-old TWICE member for waving a Taiwanese flag on the Korean television program, "My Little Television."
On Friday, Tzuyu was featured in a video on JYP Entertainment's YouTube page where she declared that "there is only one China."
Previously, JYP Entertainment declared that the country supported a one-China policy with the People's Republic of China (mainland) in governance.
The company pulled Tzuyu from promoting in China, and fellow JYP Entertainment act 2PM also felt ripples of the issue with changes to their promotional schedule due to widespread anti-Tzuyu, anti-Taiwanese-independence sentiment amongst Chinese citizens.
Tzuyu debuted as the youngest member of TWICE last year, with the song "Like Ooh-Ahh."
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Tamar Herman is a multi-media journalist and the co-founder of KultScene. She is a freelance writer and copy editor, and has written for MTV Iggy, Noisey, and Paste Magazine.
