🔗 Share this article

Customs authorities in China in eastern Shandong province have confiscated sixty thousand maps that "incorrectly labeled" the self-ruled island of Taiwan, which Beijing considers part of its sovereign land.

The maps, customs representatives explained, also "left out important islands" in the disputed South China Sea waters, where China's territorial assertions conflict with those of its neighbors, including the Philippines and Vietnamese authorities.

The "problematic" maps, meant for export, cannot be sold because they "endanger national unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity" of the People's Republic of China, authorities said.

Cartographic materials are a contentious issue for China and its regional competitors for reefs, islands and outcrops in the South China Sea.

Specific Compliance Issues

Customs authorities stated that the maps also failed to include the nine-dash boundary, which demarcates China's territorial assertion over nearly the entire South China Sea.

The demarcation includes nine dashes which stretches a significant distance southeastern direction from its southernmost province of Hainan Island.

The confiscated materials also omitted the oceanic demarcation between mainland China and the Japanese archipelago, authorities said.

Cross-Strait Situation

Customs representatives explained the maps mislabelled "the Taiwan region", without clarifying what exactly the mislabelling was.

The Chinese government considers self-governed Taiwan as its territory and has maintained the option of the use of force to take the island. But Taiwanese authorities considers itself different from the mainland China, with its own constitution and democratically-elected leaders.

Geopolitical Tensions

Conflicts in the disputed maritime region sometimes intensify - just recently over the weekend, when vessels from China and the Philippines figured in another encounter.

Manila alleged a Chinese vessel of deliberately ramming and firing its water cannon at a Philippine government vessel.

But Beijing claimed the confrontation happened after the Philippine ship ignored repeated warnings and "moved perilously near" the Chinese vessel.

Historical Precedents

The Philippine government and Vietnam are also especially concerned to depictions of the South China Sea in cartographic materials.

The Barbie movie from 2023 was prohibited in Vietnam and censored in the Philippines for depicting a South China Sea map with the nine-segment boundary.

The statement from customs authorities did not indicate where the confiscated materials were intended to be sold. The country produces much of the international products, from Christmas lights to stationery.

The confiscation of "non-compliant cartographic materials" by Chinese customs officers is not uncommon - though the amount of the maps confiscated in Shandong significantly exceeds previous confiscations. Goods that fail inspection at the customs are eliminated.

In spring, border authorities at an air transportation hub in Qingdao intercepted a batch of one hundred forty-three navigation charts that featured "apparent inaccuracies" in the sovereign limits.

In August, border authorities in the northern province seized two "violating cartographic materials" that, besides other problems, featured a "misdrawing" of the the Tibet region's limits.