Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je is under attack for his speech at the Taipei-Shanghai Twin-City Forum on Wednesday. During the 90-minute virtual event, the mayor had called for dialogue and collaboration across the Taiwan Strait. He did not confront his Chinese counterpart about the PLA’s military harassment of Taiwan, despite promising a city councilor that he would do so. On Thursday, Taipei councilors blasted the mayor for participating in the forum, demanding that the event be canceled next year.

Surrounded by reporters, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je struggles to deflect a barrage of questions. One day after the annual Taipei-Shanghai twin-city forum, he’s under attack for kowtowing to Beijing.

Gong Zheng (Dec. 1)
Shanghai mayor
We on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are compatriots and we are all Chinese. We will uphold the principle that people on both sides of the strait are one family. Together we will realize the great Chinese dream of the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

In his opening remarks, Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng touted joint progress toward the “Chinese dream.” His Taipei counterpart stuck to his old script, although he did not reiterate that the two sides of the strait are one family. He also did not confront China about its military harassment of Taiwan, councilors say.

Ko Wen-je (Dec. 1)
Taipei mayor
I only had three minutes. That time was up by the time all the niceties were over and done with. National defense and diplomacy are under the jurisdiction of the president.

Defense and diplomacy are in the purview of the president, the mayor said. But that didn’t stop him from weighing in on Facebook later in the day. In his post, he called for an end to cross-strait quarreling, noting that PLA planes entered Taiwan’s air defense buffer zone 116 times in November. His post triggered criticism from city councilors.

Lin Ying-meng
Independent Taipei councilor
He’s extremely contradictory and cynical, with the mentality of an ostrich with his head in the sand. He is entirely ignorant of what China is, of how China ceaselessly threatens and oppresses Taiwan on the international stage. He wants to sing and dance while Rome is burning. He pretends that nothing is happening as he helps Beijing peddle its United Front propaganda.

Chien Shu-pei
DPP Taipei councilor
Ko Wen-je is so tough to the domestic crowd, but when he faces China, his knees go soft. The twin-city forum has already become a great pageant for the CCP’s United Front campaign. Ko Wen-je can’t even be said to have a supporting role in the show. He’s a bit player with no room for expression.

In a Facebook post on Nov. 23, Taipei Deputy Mayor Huang Shan-shan had said that Taiwan “is an independent, sovereign nation.” Her post had reportedly offended Beijing, according to Taiwan media, which noted that Huang was absent from the twin-city forum.

Huang Shan-shan
Taipei deputy mayor
I wasn’t part of the planning of the summit to begin with, because it was focused on education and culture. Last year the focus was on pandemic measures, so it included me. The agenda for the twin-city forum was set long ago, and I had other places to be yesterday. I don’t think it’s necessary to politicize things. In Taiwan we have a free, democratic society, and everyone has the freedom to express themselves. I believe everyone should be able to respect that.

Despite being a city-level exchange, the forum has come under stiff scrutiny, as it’s now Taiwan’s only official channel of communication with China.