Taiwan Vice President Hsiao Meiqin arrives on the Italian island of Ventotene. The Vice President of the European Parliament emphasizes that Beijing has no right to interfere.

Italian news agency ANSA reported that European Parliament Vice President Pina Picierno announced that Taiwan Vice President Hsiao Meiqin had arrived on the Italian island of Ventotene to attend the second Ventotene Conference on Democracy and Freedom, emphasizing that Beijing had no right to interfere.

According to videos on ANSA and social networks, Picierno announced during the meeting that her arrival at the meeting was delayed because there was a part of the agenda that had not been made public before. "I am happy to announce that Taiwan Vice President Hsiao Meiqin has just arrived on Ventotene Island. We are very honored to invite her to our "Freedom and Democracy Conference."" Thunderous applause broke out at the scene.

Picierno said that Vice President Xiao's itinerary for attending the meeting was not announced in advance mainly because there was an intervenor - the "Chinese government".

She then emphasized, "I want to make it very clear: no one, including China, can decide who can or cannot speak here. Ventotene is a place that symbolizes freedom, struggle and democracy. We are very proud to listen to the voices of those who resist the pressure of authoritarian threats every day and defend their own freedoms and democracies."

"This is a simple and clear message: Intimidation does not determine who participates in our democratic debate," Picierno wrote on Facebook. Free speech cannot be negotiated with authoritarian regimes. Ventotene, now more than ever, needs to continue to be a place where freedom and democracy can be defended without fear.

The ANSA news agency's report was titled "Taiwan's vice president arrives in Ventotene, Beijing has no right to decide" and the subtitle was "To avoid interference from China, the Taipei representative's itinerary was previously kept secret."

The "Ventotene European Conference on Democracy and Freedom" was launched by Picienno in 2025, inviting global dissidents, movement advocates and leaders from all walks of life in Europe to attend the conference to discuss how to fight authoritarianism and protect democracy. This year’s conference was held from September 10 to 12, and participants included Oleksandra Matviichuk, the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize winner and president of the Ukrainian Center for Civil Liberties.

Ventotene Island is located 46 kilometers off the coast of Gaeta, a city in southern Italy. The island currently has a population of about 700 people.