The Washington Post
Date: Dec. 15, 2019
By:Anna Fifield
Customers wait at a Coco bubble tea shop in Beijing on Aug. 9. The brand has faced a boycott in Hong Kong as well as Taiwan, where people share the same commitment to self-rule in China’s shadow. (Greg Baker/AFP/Getty Images)
To show their solidarity with pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong and their commitment to Taiwan’s self-rule, many consumers here are boycotting bubble-tea chains that support the “one country, two systems” formula China uses to rule Hong Kong and that it hopes one day to extend to Taiwan.
“I deliberately came here today because it’s an independent Taiwan store and it doesn’t support ‘one country, two systems,’ ” said financial-services worker Alex Shuie as he waited for his drink, known as bubble or boba or pearl tea, at the Ruguo stand in central Taipei.
“There are so many options, so we can avoid the bad ones and still have lots of places to frequent,” said Shuie, who each week drinks about five cups of bubble tea, characterized by its chewy tapioca balls. [FULL STORY]