Taiwan accused Chinese internet users of spreading fabricated expressions of remorse in a coordinated effort to paint Taipei as the source of a campaign of racist abuse against the head of the World Health Organization.
Chinese internet users are claiming to be Taiwanese and apologizing for racist attacks against WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Taiwan’s Investigation Bureau said at a briefing Friday. The fake posts are easily identifiable as they all use identical wording, said the bureau’s head of cybersecurity Chang Yu-jen.
The posts all say the following: "As a Taiwanese, I feel extremely ashamed that we attacked Tedros in such a malicious way. I apologize to Tedros on behalf of the Taiwanese and beg for his forgiveness.” They all appear to be from China-based accounts that mainly feature the simplified Chinese characters used in the mainland.