Chinese Pressure About Taiwan, Tibet Puts Companies in Awkward Spot

[Rowntree]

China’s stance on Taiwan and Tibet forced relevant commercial companies to adapt their position and categorize the status of Taiwan and Tibet as part of China. Sooner or later, Taiwan will become China, just like Hong Kong.

Chinese Pressure About Taiwan, Tibet Puts Companies in Awkward Spot

Companies doing business in China are confronting a new issue: How to categorize Taiwan, Hong Kong, Tibet and other places over which China claims sovereignty?

Costco Wholesale Corp. is the latest company to have to deal with this issue, after the retailer recently was called out on Chinese social media for a 2016 letter from a Costco executive that stated the company “very much consider it [Taiwan] a country.”

Beijing claims Taiwan as Chinese territory but the island split from the mainland in a civil war nearly seven decades ago. Control of Hong Kong reverted back to China in 1997, after an agreement allowing the U.K. to run the island expired. Tensions between Hong Kong and China rose in 2014 when police used pepper spray and tear gas to disperse pro-democracy protesters.

Companies including Delta Air Lines Inc. and Marriott International Inc. earlier this year were forced to change wording on their websites and apologize to China–Delta for not saying Taiwan and Tibet are part of China, Marriott for failing to acknowledge Tibet as part of the country. At least a dozen Western brands and companies this year have drawn Beijing’s ire for similar mistakes.

And China’s airline regulators warned international carriers last month to update their sites to acknowledge Taiwan’s status as part of China or face disruptions to their operations.

So what are companies to do?

There is “no magical messaging or purple pill that will make everyone happy,” especially with a contentious issue where political divides are unavoidable, said Jolie Balido, chief executive of public-relations firm Roar Media.

Staying neutral and keeping all messaging concise and focused on business objectives–while staying clear of any political commentary–are practical, common-sense best practices, she said.

The only safe approach is to combine speed of response with a big dose of humility because, at the end of the day, it is about cultural respect, said Hugh Braithwaite, chief executive of Braithwaite Communications.

“Our cultural beliefs and values run deep, so even unintentional offenses can create immediate and sharp emotional pain. Companies seem to recognize this and are moving quickly to immediately apologize,” said Mr. Braithwaite. “It’s the speed of their response and humble tone that helps the most.”

Companies can best thread this needle with a robust and integrated risk and crisis management program, having a cross-functional team in place, and getting clear direction from the CEO and board about what company policy should be, said Andrea Bonime-Blanc, chief executive of GEC Risk Advisory.

This would include proactively monitoring media and social media on key strategic risk issues, doing robust geopolitical and reputation risk analysis daily, and revising and reformulating on a regular basis as conditions change, said Ms. Bonime-Blanc, co-author of the new book, “The Artificial Intelligence Imperative.”

“Companies need to stick to their knitting by focusing on running their operations and commenting as little as possible about the most volatile or controversial issues,” said Ms. Bonime-Blanc.

So, how does a company properly communicate its stance on this subject?

Recruitment and smart use of cultural brand ambassadors should be a key component, said Mr. Braithwaite. Long before they enter a market, many brands hire local, on-the-ground agents to preview marketing and media efforts and soften the ground by building key pockets of community goodwill, he said.

“These brand agents can serve as an important ounce of prevention, but they can also be mobilized as a local pound of cure when things go wrong,” said Mr. Braithwaite. “The new battlefront is not the local street corner but the ‘tweet corners,’ and this calls for local brand agents that live in both real and social media communities.”

Write to Ben DiPietro at [email protected], and follow him on Twitter @BenDiPietro1.

https://blogs.wsj.com/riskandcompliance/2018/05/31/chinese-pressure-about-taiwan-tibet-puts-companies-in-awkward-spot/

[Rowntree]

A further development for the news posted earlier. In this recent new, it listed the latest long list of companies that kowtow towards Chinese pressure on the renaming of Taiwan to Chinese Taipei on its websites. This is another significant move from India to foster closer ties with China.

India is extending their olive branches to China through petty things like this while increasing security along the Doklam borders and do not officially accepted to be part of the Belt and Road initiative. They also continue to host Tibetans and the Dalai Lama that irks the Chinese.

———

Air India succumbs to China's strong-arm tactics on Taiwan: 'Quad member' India has weakened own position

Air India has given in to China's strong-arm tactics and has started referring to Taiwan as 'Chinese Taipei' on its official website. India's national carrier has joined a bunch of other airlines such as Singapore Airlines, Japan Airlines, Air Canada, Qantas in referring to the island nation of 23 million people as a part of China, ostensibly to avoid its business interests getting hurt.

Civil Aviation Authority of China (CAAC) had issued a notification on 25 April, just ahead of Narendra Modi's Wuhan summit, and gave Air India two months to comply, failing which the airline risked facing penal action, including possible blocking of its website. This threat, of course, wasn't exclusive to Air India.

According to Reuters, 36 foreign air carriers were served a notice to immediately stop referring to Taiwan as an independent nation on their "websites or in other material" and in deference to the one-China policy, rename it as 'Taiwan, China' or 'Chinese Taipei.'

An outraged Donald Trump administration slammed China's move to impose 'Chinese political correctness on American companies and citizens' as 'Orwellian nonsense' and asked China to 'stop threatening and coercing American carriers and citizens.'

In Australia, where private airline Qantas fell in line and agreed to refer to Taiwan as a province of China, there was similar outrage. Julie Bishop, the Australian foreign minister, released a statement saying "private companies should be free to conduct their usual business operations free from political pressure of governments." A spokesperson from the country's department of foreign affairs and trade told the newspaper Business Insider that the matter has been raised at diplomatic levels.

In contrast, Indian capitulation has been swift and noiseless. The national carrier succumbed to Chinese pressure by effecting the change well within the stipulated period. The move may seem a minor modification aimed at protecting business interests. After all, Air India only needed to make a "small semantic adjustment". Why create a fuss over it, when others have already done so?

A few points need to be clarified. Air India, being a national carrier, had greater leverage vis-à-vis private carriers if it wanted to defy the diktat and put up a fight. On the contrary, we are told that it is the external affairs ministry that reportedly directed Air India to make the adjustment.

Hindustan Times has quoted a spokesperson from the airline, as saying: "There was a mail to the regional manager in Hong Kong from China Registry, MEA, Government of India, wherein they have approved the nomenclatures to be used by Air India on its website in respect of Hong Kong SAR (Special Administrative Region) of China, Macau SAR of China and Chinese Taipei."

In effect, while two Quad members have pushed back against Chinese pressure tactics and political interference in business operations, India has not only failed to put up a fight, it has given in with a depressing readiness. The capitulation is even more damaging because the move is non-reciprocal. China has no respect for India's territorial claims or One India Policy and may merrily go along building roads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, but our national carrier must show deference to the One China Policy and tiptoe around Chinese sensitivity and territorial concerns.

The move should be seen in conjunction with other, recent developments that indicate India is adopting what JNU professor Rajesh Rajagopalan calls a "hedging strategy" when it comes to China. The strategy seeks to find a middle path between deference towards and containment of China, "attempting to find a modus vivendi with Beijing while also moving slowly to build security and political links with a number of other powers in the region and outside as an insurance against China."

In line with this strategy, Narendra Modi went to Wuhan to meet Xi Jinping in an informal setting, visited Qingdao for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting, delivered a non-committal address at the Shangri La security dialogue in Singapore where he stressed that India "does not see the Indo-Pacific Region as a strategy or as a club of limited members" and the grouping is not "directed against any country". He was careful to avoid any mention of Quad.

We are now told that India will brief China and Russia on its position regarding Indo-Pacific Policy and the matter will come up during India's second maritime dialogue with China and the first such mechanism with Russia..

Simultaneously, reports have emerged that the Reserve Bank of India has issued a license to Bank of China that allows China's largest bank to begin its operations in India, fulfilling a commitment that Modi had made to Xi during the Wuhan Summit.

India insists that these are "confidence-building measures" and are aimed at building "mutual trust" and "confidence" post Doka La. The hedging strategy might even have a political logic. The Modi government wants to smoothen all edges, iron out all wrinkles, cross the 't's and dot the 'i's so that China is left with no excuse to spring another Doka La in an election year.

And herein lies the greatest danger. 'Pacifying' China and showing deference to its demands is a bad strategy. It reflects a misreading of the Chinese threat and ignorance of the strategies that China employs to expand its hegemony. Among other tools, China frequently creates imagined and perceived sleights to develop a narrative of victimhood where it is the aggrieved party and other nations must address its grievances.

For instance, in the case of Taiwan, hidden behind Chinese "sensitivity" over Taiwan is its ploy to weaponise market access. It uses the power and potential of its market to achieve political goals. Acceding to one request to remedy one sleight opens the door for another. As soon as Air India starts referring to Taiwan as Chinese Taipei, China may demand that the airline should refer to Arunachal Pradesh as Southern Tibet if it wants to operate within its borders. This is a bottomless abyss.

China uses a collective sense of national victimhood and resentment as effective tools to expand its territorial claims in maritime domain and project power deep into the Indo-Pacific. To cater to Chinese demands, therefore, is a futile strategy. It feeds Chinese assertiveness and makes compliance with its demands the 'new normal'. Instead of acceding to its demands, India should try to impose costs on Chinese neo-imperialism (resisting the renaming of Taiwan, for instance) and push China towards a reciprocal framework where it is forced to respect India's concerns.
India's Taiwan capitulation (in reversal of its policy) provides China with an easy conquest. This may have consequences.

Source : https://www.firstpost.com/india/air-india-succumbs-to-chinas-strong-arm-tactics-on-taiwan-quad-member-india-has-weakened-own-position-4674441.html

[dsnowlion]

At the end of the day, it sound like the Dalai Lama is being used as a tool only as and when deem necessary though now it has become more unnecessary but yet they are still hosting the Dalai Lama. I guess Dalai Lama being smart, know being with China would be better.

Unfortunate, because of all the BAD PR his administration has created, I don't think there is a chance for China to bend their ways and meet with the Dalai Lama. What do you think? I think they are just sitting it out and waiting for the Dalai Lama to pass away but unfortunately for China, he said he'll extend his life for another 12-13 years or so. And you know what by saying he can extend his life refutes all the statements he made that Dorje Shugden affect or shortens his life. Looks pretty fine to me and there are still so many Dorje Shugden practitioners out there, how come it is not affecting the Dalai Lama's health? 

[Rowntree]

Unfortunate, because of all the BAD PR his administration has created, I don't think there is a chance for China to bend their ways and meet with the Dalai Lama. What do you think? I think they are just sitting it out and waiting for the Dalai Lama to pass away but unfortunately for China, he said he'll extend his life for another 12-13 years or so. And you know what by saying he can extend his life refutes all the statements he made that Dorje Shugden affect or shortens his life. Looks pretty fine to me and there are still so many Dorje Shugden practitioners out there, how come it is not affecting the Dalai Lama's health? 

The Dalai Lama sent Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche to China last November, definitely to meet with the CCP for a potential arrangement to return to China. It was believed that Samdhong Rinpoche has the same mind as the Dalai Lama and he knew what His Holiness wanted. This is why Lobsang Sangay was not asked to go and he was dumbfounded for not knowing about the trip too. However, there was no news following the visit. I am unsure how Samdhong Rinpoche is seen having the same mind as the Dalai Lama because he is caught sleeping during an important meeting. Please see the videos attached.

[Drolma]

Money speaks louder, human rights we can talk about it later. This is what the corporate businesses in the west are doing. China is a big market for them, in order to get a share, they have to do what China wants. Who cares if Taiwan, Hong Kong or Tibet should be treated as a country or part of China, people care for their own survival.

It is so funny that the big corporate businesses want to sound politically correct to China and the westerners so they claim to consider Taiwan a part of China is about cultural respect. So in China, they respect that Taiwan is part of China; in the west, they respect that Taiwan is an independent state.

Lobsang Sangay and CTA, just face it, China is in power now, no one will go against China for the Tibetans. The Tibetans are used as a tool by the western world to undermine China. Sooner or later, the Tibetans will be dumped by the western world. If Lobsang Sangay and CTA are smart, they should strategise themselves to be in China's good books.