TAIPEI (Taiwan News) -- In response to the controversy over photos posted of Nazi flags hung in a betel nut shop in Taipei City, The Chabad Taipei Jewish Center today issued a statement calling for the removal of the banners, while also rejecting the stereotyping of Taiwanese people.

On Jan. 6, an American photographer expressed his outrage on Instagram over Nazi flags posted in betel nut shop in Taipei's Wanhua District, but he faced such a backlash from Taiwanese netizens that he is planning on leaving Taiwan for good. When asked by an Apple Daily reporter why he posted the Nazi flags in his store, the owner of the shop said he had no plans of taking the flags down saying, "The Nazi flag is a work of art, there is not political intent."

In response, The Chabad Taipei Jewish Center today expressed its regret at yet another instance of Nazi paraphernalia being used in Taiwan. The document then quoted a section from Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen's (蔡英文) New Year's Day speech in which she said, "In our rapidly changing world,Taiwan's best option is to persevere on the path of democracy, and work together with like-minded people around the globe.”

The authors highlighted the commendable emphasis Taiwanese society has placed on human rights, and reasoned that because "the first step to protecting human rights is to respect others," the betel nut store owners should also respect the Jewish victims of the Nazis and remove the banners.

The organization thanked the photographer for bringing attention to the use of the Nazi symbols, however, because they believe that "communication, understanding and acceptance are the basis for cross cultural understanding," they "reject the stereotyping of the people of Taiwan." The statement advised that some of the critical generalizations made by the photographer about Taiwanese society could "only create further mis-understanding and hate."

In closing, the authors drew a parallel to the ongoing work for transitional justice among repressed Taiwanese groups and the Jewish community, and emphasized their desire to work in unison across cultures and religions to contribute to Taiwan's prosperity, democracy, and freedoms.

Germany's Federal Foreign Office also responded to the controversy by citing a German diplomat in the Foreign Ministry as saying:

"Using Nazi symbols is a despicable act of offense against the victims of the Holocaust. We call upon everybody using Nazi signs to immediately remove those symbols."

The following is the complete statement issued by The Chabad Taipei Jewish Center:

In recent years this association has repeatedly issued public statements to

condemn the use in Taiwan of the Nazi flag which symbolizes the murderous

Nazi regime, as such use is extraordinarily hurtful to the Jewish people. We

regret to see yet another incident of the use in Taiwan of the Nazi swastika,

regardless of whether it is used by stores as decoration, worn by young people,

or in political paraphernalia. On New Years Day, President Tsai Ing-wen said “In our rapidly changing world,

Taiwan's best option is to persevere on the path of democracy, and work together

with like-minded people around the globe.” The high value that the people of

Taiwan put on human rights and democracy has attracted worldwide attention,

and the first step to the protecting human rights is to respect others. Accordingly,

we call on the Wanhua store owners who display the Nazi flag to understand

that even if no ill will is intended, their display of the Nazi flag is an

extraordinarily disrespectful act towards the Jewish victims of the Nazis and

towards human rights in general. With regard to the American individual who criticized the people of Taiwan,

while we thank him for bringing this matter to the public’s attention, we believe

communication, understanding and acceptance are the basis for cross cultural

understanding, and thus we reject any stereotyping of the people of Taiwan and

his comments on social media reported in the press such as “Taiwan still didn't

get the memo about what has happened in past history. Absolute cluelessness.”

Such words can only create further mis-understanding and hate. In recent years Taiwan has worked hard to bring about transitional justice and

unity across ethnic groups, and Taiwan is generally accepting of and open to

different cultures and religions. We, along with our members who are long term

residents of Taiwan and work to contribute to Taiwan’s prosperity, our thankful

for this. We hope that we can all respect our differences while working together

to safeguard Taiwan’s democracy and freedoms.

The Chabad Taipei Jewish Center

Rabbi Shlomi Tabib

Chairman Ross Darrell Feingold

The following is the same statement issued by The Chabad Taipei Jewish Center in Chinese: