PARIS – Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned the removal of a spectator from the badminton venue at the Paris Olympics for holding up a green banner reading, “Taiwan go for it” during competition on Aug 2.

Two Reuters journalists saw the spectator being bodily removed up a staircase, shouting, while Taiwanese shuttler Chou Tien-chen was playing.

Taiwan competes at the Olympics as Chinese Taipei to avoid objections from China, which claims the democratically governed island as its own territory. Taiwan’s government rejects Chinese sovereignty claims.

In a statement on Aug 3, Taiwan’s foreign ministry condemned “the crude and despicable means by malicious people to arbitrarily snatch the slogan ‘Taiwan go for it’” from the Taiwanese spectator.

“This violent act is not only ill-educated but also seriously violates the spirit of civilisation represented by the Olympic Games, and it is even more contrary to the rule of law and infringes on freedom of expression,” the ministry said.

It said other fans holding banners with the word “Taiwan” on them were removed by security.

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