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Netflix has pulled a Chinese TV series from its Vietnam platform after Hanoi objected to an episode showing a map showing disputed territorial claims in the South China Sea.
The 27-episode romantic drama “Shine Me” contains so-called nine-dash line images, which Vietnam has condemned as “inaccurate” and a “violation of national sovereignty”.
China uses the line on maps to delineate its territorial claims in the South China Sea. Vietnam is one of many countries that opposes these claims.
Vietnam’s Ministry of Culture issued a request on January 3 asking Netflix to remove the show and gave Netflix 24 hours to cooperate.
A BBC check on Tuesday found that the film is no longer available on Netflix’s Vietnamese platform.
The controversial map appears multiple times in Shine On Me episode 25 during a scene about China’s solar potential.
The play’s protagonist attends a lecture where a map of China showing part of the nine-dash line is projected on the auditorium screen.
“Shine On Me” was popular in China and elsewhere, ranking among the top 10 Netflix shows in Singapore, Taiwan and Vietnam before being removed.
Beijing has not officially commented on the ban, although its state-run newspaper Global Times published an article on Tuesday urging Hanoi to “separate cultural exchanges from South China Sea issues.”
In recent years, China has increasingly claimed sovereignty over several chunks of the South China Sea and adjacent waters, despite complaints from Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei.
Beijing has enlarged and built some islands and conducted maritime patrols that sometimes resulted in Fierce confrontation with the Philippine Navy.
China argues that evidence ranging from pottery shards to navigation guides used by Chinese fishermen supports its historical claims.
In 2016, the International Court of Justice in The Hague ruled that China’s sovereignty claims in the South China Sea were invalid, but Beijing did not recognize the ruling.
The dispute between Beijing and Hanoi centers particularly on the Paracel and Spratly Island chains, which are surrounded by a nine-dash line on Chinese maps.
China says its rights to the area date back centuries, when the island chains were considered an integral part of the Chinese nation.
Vietnam strongly disputes this, saying that China never claimed sovereignty over the South China Sea islands before the 1940s.
Hanoi says it has actively ruled the Paracel and Spratly Islands since the 17th century and has documentation to prove this.
There are many issues that could cause public uproar in Vietnam, including what citizens consider an insulting depiction of the Vietnam War, but the nine-dash line has always attracted the attention of authorities.
On most other issues, the Vietnamese government has actively worked to curb anti-China sentiment, but criticism that affirms Hanoi’s claims in the South China Sea is one of the very few forms of protest it deems acceptable.
According to the streaming platform Netflix, Vietnam submitted eight written deletion requests to Netflix between 2019 and 2024.
In 2023, Vietnam also asked Netflix to remove “Flying to You”, another Chinese TV series similar to Maps.
Chinese TV series are not the only ones banned in Vietnam due to the presence of the nine-dash line.
authorities prohibit Warner Bros.’ Hollywood blockbuster “Barbie” It will be released in 2023, and the DreamWorks Animation film “Snowman” will be released in 2016 for similar reasons.
Additional reporting by Sen Nguyen in Bangkok
