EDITORIAL: Disaster response and propagandaTyphoon Doksuri hit China’s southeastern provinces late last month and made its way north to Hebei Province. Chinese state media on Friday said at least 29 people had died, while 16 were missing and more than 1.75 million people had been relocated. While the floods in Taiwan and China occurred just a few days apart, people from both countries have posted online about the stark differences in disaster response measures. From Saturday last week, Chinese state media started publishing long propaganda reports touting Xi’s “strong and powerful” response to the severe floods in Beijing, saying that he had given important instructions regarding flood prevention and rescue measures early last month. Taiwanese people must remain aware of Chinese propaganda in its many forms, including false disaster news, which is only expected to increase before the presidential and legislative elections in January next year.
