Harry Potter website bows to fans’ demands that it restore Taiwan to China in drop-down menu
- Wizarding World began to refer to self-governing island simply as ‘Taiwan’ in May after student objected to China suffix
- Mainland fans threaten to turn their backs on book and movie franchise
The official website of fictional wizard Harry Potter and creator J.K. Rowling has become caught up in the tensions between Beijing and Taipei after Chinese fans demanded that it recognise Taiwan as part of China.
Mainland media reported on Saturday that Wizarding World had started to refer to the self-governing island as “Taiwan” in response to a complaint soon after its launch in May. On Sunday, the Potter websites had changed their listing to Taiwan, China.
Citing a story from Taiwan-based SET News Channel that appeared in July, EastDay – a Shanghai-based government-owned news website – said a Taiwanese university student had objected to a “province of China” drop-down menu when she tried to create an account on the site.
The student, identified as Chang Kai-han, told SET News Channel that two weeks after her complaint she received feedback from the website, confirming its listing for Taiwan had been changed in line with her objection.
EastDay’s article said that wizardingworld.com and Pottermore.com, the official entertainment and news channels founded and owned by British author Rowling for fans of Potter and her other fictional figures, also listed Hong Kong and Macau without a China suffix.
Since last year, various foreign airlines, hoteliers and clothing brands, under pressure from Beijing and mainland citizens using social media, have designated the island as “Taiwan, China” on their websites.