Troubles for Wu

[JAM]

Taiwan has issued an ultimatum to Wu when he gave up his citizenship to represent China. The ultimatum is that Wu must return to serve in the island's military or risk prison time. OMG! :frown:

China has also been wooing -- or is that "Wu-ing? -- Taiwan's top talents in other fields such as basketball, baseball, and golf.

Wu Chia-ching, 22, a world champion in 2005, rocked Taiwanese sport when he announced in April he would represent China in a pool tournament that month after becoming a Chinese citizen.

Local media said Wu is the first Taiwanese athlete to renounce citizenship in order to play for China, fuelling concern of a "brawn drain" to the mainland.

Although Wu is now a Chinese national, Taiwan's authorities insist that he still has to fulfil his civic duty to serve one year in the military or risk up to five years in prison for being a deserter.

"Wu has to return to Taiwan within six months or he will be prosecuted and jailed for deserting and be put on the wanted list for 20 years," said Hung Chung-lien, an official in the New Taipei City government.

Source: Taiwan in ultimatum to pool champ poached by China [Retrieved 1 August 2011]

Wu was crowned World Champion in 2005.

 

[JAM]

Here's the skinny...

Wu, who changed his nationality in April this year to compete for China but did not renounce his Taiwanese citizenship, was a student of Chinese Culture University in Taipei, making him eligible for a military service deferment.

The university, however, notified Wu in March that he had been expelled, eliminating his military service deferment privileges.

The Civil Affairs Department will give Wu a six-month notification period starting from July 14 to report for military service, meaning that he should be available at his Taishan, New Taipei City home by Jan. 14, 2012 for duty, the department said.

Wu's year of military service, required of all young Taiwanese men, could start in early February 2012, department officials said.

In an interview with the Central News Agency in the Philippines in May, Wu said he has no plans to return to Taiwan for the time being.

Politics raises its ugly head for poor Wu. :frown:

Well, he's got until February 2012 to straighten all this out. :smile:

Source: Pool player who switched nationality faces military service issue [Retrieved 1 August 2011]

 

[Johnnyt]

I guess China can't copy talent. Probably just a scare tactic to stop others from going to China. Johnnyt

 

[JAM]

I guess China can't copy talent. Probably just a scare tactic to stop others from going to China. Johnnyt

I'm curious about this dilemma for Wu. What I think -- and I may be wrong -- is that the opportunities representing China may be more plentiful.

BUT, as I recall, when Wu won the 2005 WPC, he accepted a huge gift from Taiwan, the equivalent of $100,000. Taiwan was proud that Wu won this event held on their soil, as I recall. The entire country celebrated this almighty win.

Danny Basavich, who competed in the 2005 WPC in Taiwan, told me that when he went to the Taiwanese McDonald's to get an order to go, all of the McDonald's bags at the Taiwanese McDonald's had advertisements of the World Pool Championship written on them. Taiwan really went all out for that WPC.

Another interesting story about the 2005 WPC in Taiwan came from a post written by Niels Feijen on his website that somebody shared on AzBilliards. It's about Gabe Owen competing in the 2005 WPC. :grin:

Ran into my man Gabe Owen in the lobby this morning and I asked him if he made it through his group. He said yeah and then he told me a story about his second to last match!! He was playing Louis Condo jr from Australia on table 8 which is all the way in the corner where I played Thorsten Schober.

They were in the match and he returned to his seat when he saw a huge spider sitting on the wall only a couple of meters above his chair!! He said it was the size of his hand!!!

Holy shit, I would have shit myself hahaha as a spiderfreak. Gabe said he did shit himself haha. He thought of just letting it sit there but he said Louis Condo thought he was the crocidile hunter and started poking the thing with his cue!!!

It came down from the wall onto the floor and started jumping toward Johnny Archer and Jeremy Jones who were sweating Gabe's match!! They were all starting to freak out when Louis started to pound the thing with his feet and squached it to peices!!! How do you like that folks??!! Playing to survive the group...all of a sudden surviving a big ass spider hahaha.

Wu said he was going to buy a house for his grandmother to live in with the the monies that the Taiwanese government gave to him, the equivalent of $100,000, which I thought was so sweet. That generosity endeared Wu to me. :smiling-heart:

 

[JAM]

Correction

It was not $100,000 that Taiwan gifted Wu, but rather it was $75,000.

Nicknamed "Little Genius," Wu became the youngest male world 9-ball champion ever, but his even temper under pressure was amazing for a player of any age. After breaking at 16-16 and seeing a clear path to victory, Wu took the time to wipe down his cue and hands several times, and at one point even smiled, sat down and took a long swig from his water bottle, bringing laughter and applause from the crowd. Only after he had a chance to hug his grandmother during the trophy presentation did Wu start bawling like a baby.

"I proved to myself and to my grandmother that I could do it," Wu said.

Wu's 63-year-old grandmother, Chu-Chi Lin, encouraged Wu from the beginning of his interest in pool at age 6. And when he couldn't stop crying at the presentation ceremony, she jumped out of the crowd to wipe his brow several times, arrange his collar and straighten the ribbon of his gold medal.

With his $75,000 grand prize, Wu planned on buying a new home for himself and his family. Kuo pocketed $35,000 for second place.


Source: 'Little Genius' Comes Up Big in World Pool Championship Final,Billiards Digest, 10 July 2005 [Retrieved 1 August 2011]

 

[iusedtoberich]

I vaguely recall there was the prize fund from the tournament, and then an additionally gift by the govt. So perhaps 75K prize fund, plus 100K from govt?

If this situation happened to a non-famous person, would he still be required to serve in the military? Without knowing all the rules, my assumption is yes, the young man would. Gov'ts are fairly stringent on whatever military rules they have in place.

 

[JAM]

I vaguely recall there was the prize fund from the tournament, and then an additionally gift by the govt. So perhaps 75K prize fund, plus 100K from govt?

If this situation happened to a non-famous person, would he still be required to serve in the military? Without knowing all the rules, my assumption is yes, the young man would. Gov'ts are fairly stringent on whatever military rules they have in place.

I think you are right, iusedtoberich! The prize fund for first place at the WPC in 2005 was $75,000. The $100,000 figure is the amount that the government gave to Wu for winning his championship as a Taiwanese citizen.

After 2005, the first-place prize was $100,000, but this was after Wu's win.

The military problem comes from the fact that Wu was in college, and the college students do not have to serve in the military if they're in school: Wu, who changed his nationality in April this year to compete for China but did not renounce his Taiwanese citizenship, was a student of Chinese Culture University in Taipei, making him eligible for a military service deferment.

I tried to do some research on the worldpoolchampionship website (a Matchroom Sports-owned website), but the only information I could find was the last tournament produced by Matchroom Sports in 2007, won by Peach. I cannot seem to locate any info on that website about the previous WPCs. Maybe I am not as good at navigating, but I cannot find one mention of the 2005 WPC. Matchroom discontinued a forum they used to have on that website as well.

After this time, I believe -- and this is subject to check -- Matchroom Sports does not promote further WPCs. I can't remember why, though.

 

[Maniac]

The military problem comes from the fact that Wu was in college, and the college students do not have to serve in the military if they're in school: Wu, who changed his nationality in April this year to compete for China but did not renounce his Taiwanese citizenship, was a student of Chinese Culture University in Taipei, making him eligible for a military service deferment.

"Oh, what a tangled web we weave....."

You cannot be a citizen of TWO countries (oh, it may be LEGAL, but that don't make it RIGHT). IMO, Wu brought all of this upon himself. He, upon becoming a citizen of China, should have renounced his citizenship from Taiwan. He is trying to "have his cake and eat it too". If he still claims to be a citizen of Taiwan also, then he needs to "man up" and do his stint in the military. As a poolplayer, he is no better than all the other young men and women that are serving their time in the Taiwanese military. I do not feel sorry for him that he is having the problems that he is experiencing. Being a great poolplayer is NOT a free pass for ANYTHING!!!

Once again, just my opinion.

Maniac (who hopes he is reading this story correctly)

 

[JAM]

...Once again, just my opinion.

Maniac (who hopes he is reading this story correctly)

I think you *are* reading the story correctly. :smile:

Alex Pagulayan has dual citizenship, as does, I believe, Jose Parica.

If the Tawainese government gave Wu a large sum of cash for winning the 2005 WPC representing Taiwan, I guess they may not like to see Wu representing China, but that's not where Wu's troubles began.

Wu managed to skip the military draft in Taiwan by going to college. The college kicked him out, I assume, for non-attendance, since he was being a tournament soldier on the international pool tournament trail. I guess all men must go into the military in Taiwan unless they go *and* finish college.

That's where Wu-Wu made a booboo. :shocked:

 

[pt109]

I think you *are* reading the story correctly. :smile:

Alex Pagulayan has dual citizenship, as does, I believe, Jose Parica.

If the Tawainese government gave Wu a large sum of cash for winning the 2005 WPC representing Taiwan, I guess they may not like to see Wu representing China, but that's not where Wu's troubles began.

Wu managed to skip the military draft in Taiwan by going to college. The college kicked him out, I assume, for non-attendance, since he was being a tournament soldier on the international pool tournament trail. I guess all men must go into the military in Taiwan unless they go *and* finish college.

That's where Wu-Wu made a booboo. :shocked:

I hope he goes back and does his duty.....
..should have no trouble with the drills...:smile:
If he doesn't, it will hurt his spirit and affect him for the rest of his life.

..does Corey have deuel citizenship?

 

[Georgia Boy]

"Oh, what a tangled web we weave....."

You cannot be a citizen of TWO countries (oh, it may be LEGAL, but that don't make it RIGHT). IMO, Wu brought all of this upon himself. He, upon becoming a citizen of China, should have renounced his citizenship from Taiwan. He is trying to "have his cake and eat it too". If he still claims to be a citizen of Taiwan also, then he needs to "man up" and do his stint in the military. As a poolplayer, he is no better than all the other young men and women that are serving their time in the Taiwanese military. I do not feel sorry for him that he is having the problems that he is experiencing. Being a great poolplayer is NOT a free pass for ANYTHING!!!

Once again, just my opinion.

Maniac (who hopes he is reading this story correctly)

Maniac
You are right in that he brought this upon himself. I am not sure about the legalities of Dual Citizenship in Taiwan and China, but I suspect they are complicated to say the least. I know here in the US the situation was pretty clear last time I looked it stated:

"A U.S. citizen may acquire foreign citizenship by marriage, or a person naturalized as a U.S. citizen may not lose the citizenship of the country of birth.U.S. law does not mention dual nationality or require a person to choose one citizenship or another. Also, a person who is automatically granted another citizenship does not risk losing U.S. citizenship. However, a person who acquires a foreign citizenship by applying for it may lose U.S. citizenship. In order to lose U.S. citizenship, the law requires that the person must apply for the foreign citizenship voluntarily, by free choice, and with the intention to give up U.S. citizenship."

So even under US rules he could be deemed to have relinquished citizenship simply by asking for it and I'm sure theirs are more complicated and less open that here.

 

[alstl]

I'm surprised he left Taiwan to play for China. Interesting story, thanks for posting.

 

[Hierovision]

A year in the military is worth maintaining citizenship... although I'm sure he'll end up renouncing one or the other eventually. I would never want Chinese citizenship... I prefer having the right to freely express myself.

 

[Celtic]

What a gongshow. He should have stayed in Singapore and became a sole citizen of that nation.

I blame the international pool organizations for most of this, they are the ones that went along with China and Taiwan and upheld the multi-year ban on Wu playing in any international events because he chose to move to a different country.

Wu is getting screwed from every side on this, the number of players who shift from one country to another in this sport is huge. Thorsten, Alex, Charlie, Parica, I have never seen another player get banned from international competition for moving to a new country, EXCEPT for Wu.

Shame on the international pool tournament bodies such as the WPA for caving to threats from China and Taiwan and making it impossible for Wu to make a living if he leaves Taiwan. In effect the WPA is supporting a form of national servitude, a form of slavery where a player cannot move from a country and must be under the control of that country for life or else they lose their ability to eat.

WPA, you caused this with your inconsistent laws and pandering to a single countries will to keep their players in virtual slavery. You are a pretty disgusting organization IMO.

<edit> removed the B from the World Pool-Billiards Association acronym. /sigh

 

[Scott Lee]

JAM...Wu would still have the obligation of the Taiwan military, whether he finished college or not. College is just a temporary 'deferment'.

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com

I think you *are* reading the story correctly. :smile:

Alex Pagulayan has dual citizenship, as does, I believe, Jose Parica.

If the Tawainese government gave Wu a large sum of cash for winning the 2005 WPC representing Taiwan, I guess they may not like to see Wu representing China, but that's not where Wu's troubles began.

Wu managed to skip the military draft in Taiwan by going to college. The college kicked him out, I assume, for non-attendance, since he was being a tournament soldier on the international pool tournament trail. I guess all men must go into the military in Taiwan unless they go *and* finish college.

That's where Wu-Wu made a booboo. :shocked:

 

[JAM]

JAM...Wu would still have the obligation of the Taiwan military, whether he finished college or not. College is just a temporary 'deferment'.

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com

Well, heck, I'd leave, too, then. That doesn't seem fair. It's a mandatory draft system? Wow! Poor Wu! :frown:

 

[sjm]

What a gongshow. He should have stayed in Singapore and became a sole citizen of that nation.

I blame the international pool organizations for most of this, they are the ones that went along with China and Taiwan and upheld the multi-year ban on Wu playing in any international events because he chose to move to a different country.

Wu is getting screwed from every side on this, the number of players who shift from one country to another in this sport is huge. Thorsten, Alex, Charlie, Parica, I have never seen another player get banned from international competition for moving to a new country, EXCEPT for Wu.

Shame on the international pool tournament bodies such as the WPBA for caving to threats from China and Taiwan and making it impossible for Wu to make a living if he leaves Taiwan. In effect the WPBA is supporting a form of national servitude, a form of slavery where a player cannot move from a country and must be under the control of that country for life or else they lose their ability to eat.

WPBA, you caused this with your inconsistent laws and pandering to a single countries will to keep their players in virtual slavery. You are a pretty disgusting organization IMO.

I suspect you owe the WPBA (Women's Professional Billiards Association) an apology here. They really have nothing to do with this.

 

[JAM]

I suspect you owe the WPBA (Women's Professional Billiards Association) an apology here. They really have nothing to do with this.

It's the website for the WPA which makes it confusing. Their name is the World Pool-Billiard Association technically, though they call themselves the "WPA." :embarrassed2:

Alphabet soup!

I knew what Celtic meant, though, having visited the WPA website a short time ago. They have recently updated their website, and it's a big improvement. :smile:

Maybe the WPA is starting to take heed as to what others in the pool world are saying, even on our little ol' message board here.

 

[Celtic]

I suspect you owe the WPBA (Women's Professional Billiards Association) an apology here. They really have nothing to do with this.

World Pool-Billiard Association.

My mistake that their acronym is WPA is as much their mistake for combining the two worlds and skipping "Billiards" as part of their own acronym.

I am pretty sure noone thought I meant that Wu was being done in by the Womens tour, and if they did....

Regardless it is editted.

 

["Popeye"]

Very interesting story. Thanks for sharing.