Taiwan’s foreign minister said China’s pressure on other countries to limit Taiwan’s access to international events has become “the new normal” after two Taiwanese delegates were detained in Kenya and denied access to the Our Ocean Conference in Mombasa.
Who Gets Shut Out
The latest crackdown on Taiwan’s international participation hit two delegates who were denied access on the grounds that their Taiwanese passports were not recognized, Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry in Taipei said on Tuesday. Their passports and mobile phones were confiscated, and they were detained for more than 20 hours before being allowed to leave the country, the ministry said. The rest of the Taiwanese delegation withdrew from the conference after the incident, showing how quickly a diplomatic dispute becomes a practical barrier for ordinary delegates trying to attend a global meeting.
The conference itself is being hosted by Kenya and focuses on critical ocean issues, including climate change, biodiversity and pollution. Hundreds of delegates from Africa, the U.S., the European Union and climate-vulnerable Caribbean and Pacific island nations are taking part. Organizers have sought to position Africa — which is hosting the event for the first time — as a driving force in global ocean governance.
The State Says “One China”
Kenya defended its decision to deny access to the Taiwanese nationals. Foreign Ministry Principal Secretary Korir Sing’oei said his country’s foreign policy “recognizes only one China.” That line, repeated by governments and institutions under pressure from Beijing, is the mechanism that turns a conference on oceans into a gatekeeping exercise over who is allowed to enter, speak, and be seen.
Lin Chia-Lung criticized Kenya for its “unilateral distortion and unwarranted expansion of their so-called ‘One China’ interpretation,” referring to Beijing’s claims over Taiwan. Lin said, “Kenya’s obstruction of our delegates from attending the meeting is absolutely wrong, and we strongly condemn and protest against it.” China has not commented on the accusations.
Pressure as the New Normal
Lin said attempts by China to exert pressure or influence on other countries to limit Taiwan’s access to international events has become “the new normal.” He said China is increasingly pressuring other countries to exclude Taiwan, especially when it comes to developing and emerging economies that are under Beijing’s economic sway. “Some Global South countries are manipulated by the Chinese government in every way,” Lin said. “Some democratic countries are trying to fight against it.”
China has long tried to limit Taiwan’s representation in international bodies, including the World Health Organization and its governing body, the World Health Assembly. At the Olympic Games, Taiwan is forced to participate under the name “Chinese Taipei” due to Beijing’s pressure. The pattern is familiar: institutions that claim neutrality end up enforcing hierarchy, and the people on the bottom are the ones who lose access, recognition, and mobility.
China and Taiwan have been governed separately since 1949, when the Communist Party rose to power in Beijing following a civil war. Defeated Nationalist Party forces fled to Taiwan, which later transitioned from martial law to multiparty democracy. For decades, China has seen Taiwan as its own territory and said the island must come under its control, even under the use of force if necessary.
The Kenya incident lands inside that long-running struggle over recognition, access and control. The conference in Mombasa was supposed to be about oceans, climate change and pollution. Instead, the apparatus of state power made sure the question was who gets to enter at all.