TAIPEI (TVBS News) — The German Institute Taipei (德國在台協會), Germany's de facto embassy in Taiwan, issued a rare public rebuke Wednesday (May 7) when it condemned comments by the island's main opposition leader. The German office expressed disappointment and concern over remarks by Kuomintang (KMT, 國民黨) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), who sparked controversy by comparing President Lai Ching-te's (賴清德) treatment of opposition parties to the actions of Adolf Hitler.
In a pointed statement released on social media platforms, the German diplomatic office emphasized that contemporary Taiwanese politics bears no resemblance to the brutal tyranny of Nazi Germany. Representatives from the institute specifically rejected any comparison between Taiwan's democratic institutions and the terror apparatus of the Third Reich. The statement urged leaders of the Kuomintang, Taiwan's oldest political party, to refrain from employing such inflammatory historical analogies in domestic political debates.
German officials further emphasized that trivializing the suffering of millions who perished under National Socialism disrespects their memory. The statement underscored the moral imperative of preserving accurate historical narratives about the Holocaust and Nazi atrocities. "Collective efforts" to maintain historical accuracy about this dark period remain essential, the institute noted, implicitly criticizing the political weaponization of such sensitive historical comparisons. ★