View of Shanghai. No question of exceeding or use the wrong color ! Foreign enterprises that operate on chinese soil are prevented : the maps of China that they present to their clients must be flawless, in other words, correspond to the territorial claims of the countries to the smallest island.
In January, several companies, including Zara, Audi, Muji, or Delta Airlines, have made the charges, following a scandal involving the luxury hotel chain the Marriott. On its website, hong Kong, Macao, Tibet and Taiwan were represented as four independent States, which did not fail to provoke the ire of chinese internet users.
In the matter, the right to the error does not exist, especially when the error bears on disputed territory. If Tibet and hong Kong are officially areas of china, they have a special status. As for Taiwan, the island claimed by Beijing has the characteristics of a State with an independent government and a standing army of its own, but not international recognition. The subject of belonging to the motherland causes a knee-jerk reaction among most chinese citizens.
The risks are not confined to a very bad publicity. On 12 January, Marriott has received the order to close all its sites and mobile applications in China, and this for six days. The american chain, of which such country has assured a 19% growth in 2017, has tried to appease the wrath of the chinese.
Cards that are considered ” problematic ”
“Marriott International respects and supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of China. We present our most sincere apologies, ” said the group chief executive, Arne Sorenson, in a press release. Shortly after, the group published a ” plan of correction eight-point “, in order to prevent future errors, in a vocabulary that is not without reminding us of the campaigns of the ” corrections “…
