Why Beijing is Outraged Over Taiwan's Lai Honouring a WWII Era Japanese Engineer The recent memorial service attended by Taiwanese leader William Lai in honor of Yoichi Hatta, a Japanese engineer responsible for building vital irrigation infrastructure during Taiwan's colonial period, has sparked outrage from Beijing.
The People's Daily accused Lai of "forgetting his ancestors" and "ingratiating himself with Japan," but this criticism masks a deeper issue: the complexities of Taiwan's relationship with its colonial past.
Lai praised Hatta's contributions to Taiwanese agriculture and industry as significant. However, the context in which he made these remarks has set off alarms in Beijing.