The mother of a 16-year-old Taiwanese K-pop singer, who was apparently forced to apologize for waving the island's flag, has told Taiwanese media that she hopes the situation will ease and her daughter can "sing and dance pleasantly again."

The K-pop singer, Chou Tzu-yu, waved Taiwan's national flag on a South Korean entertainment TV program in November.

The flag-waving image of Chou, who performs under the name of Tzuyu as a member of the South Korean girl band TWICE, sparked a row in mainland China after China-based Taiwanese singer Huang An reportedly accused Chou of supporting Taiwanese independence.

The issue has attracted intense media attention in both Taiwan and China at a time when Tsai Ing-won of Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party that wants independence from China has been elected as the island's first female president.

In an apparent fear that the issue could fan nationalistic sentiment in mainland China, Chou's South Korean management agency, JYP Entertainment, apologized and suspended the activities of Chou.

Taiwan and China split in 1949 after a civil war. China's ruling Communist Party claims sovereignty over Taiwan, but the landslide victory of Tsai Ing-won shows that many Taiwanese people support the island's democracy. (Yonhap)