Take heart from our polls, Tsai Ing-wen tells HK

President Tsai Ing-wen says Hong Kong people had reminded young Taiwanese of the importance of freedom and democracy. File photo: AFP

Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen said on Monday that she hopes the people of Hong Kong will "take heart" from the island's polls at the weekend, which saw her re-elected for a second term and her Democratic Progressive Party retain control of the legislature.



In a post on Twitter, Tsai noted that the months of unrest in Hong Kong had given many people in Taiwan pause for thought.



"Before the elections, I said that Taiwan would come together to defend our freedom & democracy. Over the past 6 months, Hong Kong has shown us how precious that commitment is," the Tweet said.



"I hope the people of Hong Kong take heart in the message our elections have sent to the world."



In an earlier post on Facebook, Tsai said a lot of "young friends" from Hong Kong had spent the past half a year highlighting the SAR's plight in different corners of Taiwan.



She said that through social media, young people on the island saw what was happening in Hong Kong, making them appreciate the importance of freedom and democracy.



The president also asked Hongkongers whether they had seen how Taiwan has defended the "fortress of democracy".



On Sunday, Taipei asked Beijing to respect the results of Taiwan's elections and abandon threats of force against the island.



Beijing had earlier reiterated its stance that Taiwan is part of China, while state media claimed that Tsai's landslide victory over Han Kuo-yu, from the Beijing-friendly Kuomintang, was down to cheating and "dirty tactics".