An AI generated photo circulating online this week claimed to show Taiwan's Labor Minister Hong Shen-han holding up the flag of the Republic of China during an APEC meeting in Nanjing, China. Deputy Minister Liang Wen-chieh of Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council reposted the image on Threads on September 23 with a blunt question: what was the point of making a fake photo like that?
A Viral Post Called It Exclusive Footage
The original post that put the image into circulation described it as "exclusive footage" of Hong at the APEC gathering, framing the fabricated image as a stand against China and an assertion of Taiwan's dignity as an equal participant, while also taking aim at Taiwan's opposition Kuomintang and Taiwan People's Party. The post quickly drew skepticism from other users, who argued a fabricated image should not be passed off as a record of what actually happened at the meeting. Commenters under the post warned others directly: "Fake photo. Don't fall for it."
Liang's own repost of the claim, which he shared to question why anyone would bother producing such a fake image, is embedded below:
View on Threads
Hong Says He Traveled Without A Travel Permit And On Equal Footing
Liang was not the only official to push back. Hong himself addressed the controversy after returning to Taiwan, telling reporters he entered China for the meeting the way Taiwanese delegates customarily do at APEC events, on the strength of an official APEC invitation letter. Asked directly whether he had applied for or used a Chinese Taiwan Compatriot Travel Permit for the trip, the document some in Taiwan see as implicitly treating Taiwanese citizens as Chinese nationals, Hong was unequivocal: "I did not apply for one, and I did not use one."
Hong noted that Taiwan's official membership designation at APEC is "Chinese Taipei," and said the more important point was that Taiwan's delegation received the same rights as other member economies at the meeting. He credited Taiwan's own insistence, along with assistance from the APEC secretariat, with ensuring China followed the standard rules for the gathering, adding that Taiwan's participation this time was not diminished or downgraded in any way.
