Li Yuchun, winner of the mainland's Super Girl singing contest, left Taiwan yesterday after a five-day trip that saw her make little use of her vocal chords due to government restrictions.
Li, who has won the hearts of mainland and Taiwanese fans since being crowned No1 Super Girl in August, was invited by the Taipei-based Show Business Association to take part in a concert on Sunday.
However, the Mainland Affairs Council - Taiwan's top mainland policymaking body - bans visitors from the mainland from doing anything beyond the stated purpose of their visits, and Li had to shun publicity during her stay.
Local news media constantly pushed for interviews with the 21-year-old singer and her sponsor finally thought of a loophole to outwit the council - having local TV stations remove their logos from the microphones during a joint interview on Sunday for overseas TV news channels, including Hong-Kong based Phoenix TV.
A smiling Li was seen in Taiwanese television footage saying she felt fine about being able to speak in front of the camera again. The singer said she did not know about the restrictions, but quickly added: 'I am usually quite quiet.'
Meanwhile, concert sponsor Yang Kuang-yu, head of the Show Business Association, criticised the council for trying to stop mainland entertainers from speaking.
