Fair Play for Women tell us more about the government of Taiwan’s efforts to control their speech.

Taiwanese authorities are trying to censor the comments we made about male boxer Lin Yu Ting following the Olympic boxing scandal. The office of the Taiwanese ambassador, Vincent Yao, contacted us on Tuesday to express their “gravest concern” that we had chosen to “verbally attack a biological female” and asked that we “put an end to the act of spreading disinformation and harmful comments.”

Which is odd, at best. Do ambassadors really not have better things to do? Do ambassadors generally think they get to tell random people what to say about the ambassadors’ compatriots?

What the ambassador’s office said:

We are writing to express our gravest concern over the recent statement made by Fair Play for Women on social medias regarding the gender issue of Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu Ting, who just won a gold medal in Olympics 2024.

In response to Fair Play for Women’s false comments, we would like to clarify that Lin Yu Ting’s eligibility to participate in women’s boxing in the Olympics has been clearly confirmed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

It is deeply regrettable to see that Fair Play for Women, an organization aiming for promoting women’s rights, has chosen to verbally attack a biological female based on unfounded accusations, misinformation and her appearance. Such action will only jeopardize the solidarity of women and undermine the genuine spirit of feminism.

Therefore, we sincerely urge you to pull out those inappropriate posts on social medias such as X in respect of Ling Yu Ting, and to put an end to the act of spreading disinformation and harmful comments.

Fair Play for Women didn’t “attack” Lin Yu Ting. It’s not attacking to point out that a man is a man.

Lin Yu Ting is not “a biological female.”

Men who pretend to be women in order to win sports competitions (thus depriving women of the chance to do so) are not doing that for the sake of “the solidarity of women and undermine the genuine spirit of feminism.” They couldn’t give two shits about women and feminism; if they did they wouldn’t be cheating this way. The “genuine spirit of feminism” is not about letting men steal prizes from women.

We sincerely urge the Taiwanese ambassador to mind his own damn business and leave UK women alone.

Nicola Williams replied to the ambassador, asking him to “confirm that Lin has XX chromosomes and an ordinary female phenotype, including testosterone levels in the normal female range.” His response:

Regarding your question and request, President Thomas Bach of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has made it clear that Ms Lin Yu Ting is born as a woman, raised as a woman, has a passport as a woman and has competed for many years as a woman.

Yet again. Yes, Thomas Bach said words. We know. Words are not magic. Assertion is not evidence. As a woman is meaningless. Williams requested confirmation of physical facts, not burbling about passports and cheating for many years.

Of course no such confirmation was forthcoming.