In short:
A Chinese exchange student has been deported from Taiwan after posting a video of himself appearing to pinch the Taiwanese president.
Taiwan's immigration authority says the student violated regulations governing mainland Chinese people's entry into Taiwan.
What's next?
Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation says it hopes the incident will not affect future mainland exchange students to Taiwan.
An exchange student from China has been deported from Taiwan after posting a controversial video of himself using an illusion technique to make it look like he is pinching the Taiwanese president.
Lai Ching-te was speaking at the National Taiwan University last week when the student, identified publicly via his surname Wang, filmed the president from the audience.
Wang used an optical illusion technique, forced perspective, and put his fingers in front of the camera so it looked like he was pinching the president.
In the caption of the video posted on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, Wang wrote: "Lai Ching-te is right here. Isn't it your once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
He also tagged the post with "cross-strait reunification", "oppose separatist acts seeking Taiwan independence" and "reunification is inevitable", in phrases which often appear in Chinese political rhetoric.
Wang has since deleted the video, apologised, and all content on his Douyin account has been cleared.
China sees the self-ruled island of Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to take it back.
Labelled as a separatist by Beijing, Mr Lai has repeatedly said the Republic of China (Taiwan) is a sovereign and independent country.
On October 16, the National Immigration Agency of Taiwan confirmed the student had been deported after his Taiwan entry permit was revoked.
This was due to violating the "principle of equality and dignity", part of regulations governing mainland Chinese people's entry into Taiwan, the agency said.
The student has been banned from entering Taiwan for five years.
"Our country is [a] democratic, free, and pluralistic society, respecting different opinions and normal exchanges; however, people from mainland China coming to Taiwan must still comply with our laws and related regulations," the agency wrote in a statement.
The National Taiwan University told the ABC the deported student was from a partner university, and it provided all necessary assistance during the authorities' inquiry.
"We respect differing opinions on public policies, as rational dialogue is the cornerstone of a democratic society," a university spokesperson said.
"We hope this incident serves as a reminder that the exercise of free speech must always come with mutual respect for others."
Local media reported that Kuomintang (KMT) politician Lin Pei-hsiang questioned the deportation decision, asking whether deporting the student over a social media post infringed on freedom of speech.
He suggested that political satire should be differentiated from a real threat.
Lo Wen-jia, secretary-general of Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation, said he respected the decision of the immigration agency, but he hoped that the incident would not affect future mainland exchange students to Taiwan.
The ABC has approached the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Australia and the Chinese embassy for comments.
