Taiwan: Row erupts after alleged anti-India messaging on local election candidate’s billboard

A Taiwanese ward chief contesting city council elections in the Kaohsiung municipality recently sparked a social media furore after putting up a billboard featuring an Indian flag and an illustration of a turbaned man, with several users alleging that the poster reflected racist attitudes, the Taipei Times reported.

The billboard had been put up by Lee Hung-yi, the ward chief of Gangming borough in Kaohsiung’s Siaogang district, the newspaper reported. Lee is contesting as an independent candidate in the city council election slated for November, although he is a member of the Taiwan People’s Party.

The billboard featured a “no” symbol over an inverted Indian flag and a brown-skinned man wearing a turban.

The Taiwanese are not particularly fond of Indians. One political candidate in Kaohsiung vows to ban Indians from immigrating. pic.twitter.com/bKrvIoXi0W— Ian Miles Cheong (@ianmiles) May 18, 2026

An individual who described themselves as an Indian living in Taiwan for many years told the Taipei Times on May 12 that the poster amounted to “blatant and direct racial discrimination”.

“I can respect that everyone has different views on migrant worker policy,” the social media user was quoted as saying. “You don’t want Taiwan to open up to migrant workers – that is your political stance. But expressing it in this way really doesn’t seem...

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