A British teacher's remarks about Taiwan during an online English class have led to his dismissal from an educational platform in the People's Republic of China (PRC).
On September 17, a video surfaced on Weibo showing the teacher stating, “Taiwan is not China; Taiwan is a country, did you know?” while instructing primary school students through Lingostar, an online teaching platform.
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| Weibo screenshot |
The teacher, who stated that he lived in Taiwan for a long time, sparked immediate backlash from parents present during the class. They insisted that “Taiwan belongs to China,” leading to a heated exchange.
The situation escalated when the teacher responded with a middle finger gesture before abruptly quitting the session.
Lingostar quickly issued a statement affirming its commitment to the “one-China principle” and explaining that all teachers must sign a commitment letter prohibiting political discourse in the classroom. The teacher, still on probation, was promptly fired for violating this agreement.
On September 20, the China Private Education Association (äøå½ę°åęč²åä¼, CPEA) announced in a social media post that “many netizens filed reports” regarding the British teacher's behaviour.
“After verification with the authorities, it was confirmed that the entity involved is an unqualified and illegal organisation. The relevant app has been removed from stores, and further investigations and actions regarding the violations will be conducted,” CPEA stated.
The PRC claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to annex it, by force if necessary. The “one-China principle” (äøåäøååå) refers to the claim that there is only one China and Taiwan is part of it.
Taiwan, whose official name is Republic of China (ROC), was taken over by ROC authorities in 1945 following 50 years of Japanese colonial rule. After the Communist Party staged a revolutionary insurgency and defeated the ROC government in 1949, the latter retreated to Taiwan, with the intention of “retaking the mainland” at some point. Taiwan has therefore never been ruled by the Communist regime.
In the PRC, the “one-China principle” is a state-enforced dogma. Beijing routinely threatens Taiwan with armed conflict if it does not accept “reunification”.
In June 2024, PRC Lieutenant General Jing Jianfeng (ęÆå»ŗå³°) said that "Taiwan independence means war” at a press conference during the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore.
“China will never cease enhancing combat readiness, never relent in our fight against ‘Taiwan independence’ separatists, and never tolerate external interference. The Chinese military will take resolute actions to fulfill our mission of safeguarding national sovereignty,” he stated.
But in democratic Taiwan, the majority of people prefer to maintain the status quo. A February 2024 survey conducted by National Chengchi University (NCCU) in Taiwan showed that 33.2% of respondents preferred to “maintain the status quo indefinitely,” while 25.8% preferred to “maintain the status quo, move toward independence.” The number of people who preferred to “maintain the status quo, move toward unification” stood at around 6%.
In the survey’s context, “independence” refers to a formal declaration of independence which would include changing the country's official name and national symbols. The position of the incumbent Taiwanese President Lai Ch'ing-te and his predecessor is that the ROC is already a sovereign and independent state which is not subordinate to the PRC.
In a May 2024 interview, President Lai said that according to international law “we are already a sovereign and independent country” and that “the PRC should recognize that the Republic of China (ROC) exists.”
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