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Customs authorities in China in eastern Shandong province have confiscated sixty thousand maps that "improperly identified" the self-governed island of Taiwan, which Chinese authorities claims as part of its sovereign land.

The maps, customs representatives explained, also "omitted important islands" in the South China Sea, where China's territorial assertions conflict with those of its neighbors, including the Philippine government and Vietnam.

The "problematic" maps, destined for overseas markets, cannot be sold because they "threaten national unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity" of the People's Republic of China, authorities said.

Maps are a sensitive topic for China and its regional competitors for coral formations, islands and outcrops in the disputed maritime region.

Detailed Violations

Customs authorities stated that the maps also omitted the nine-segment line, which outlines China's territorial assertion over almost the whole South China Sea.

The line comprises nine segments which runs a significant distance southeastern direction from its southern province of Hainan Island.

The intercepted cartographic items also failed to indicate the oceanic demarcation between mainland China and the Japanese archipelago, authorities said.

Taiwan Situation

Customs representatives explained the maps improperly identified "Taiwan province", without specifying what exactly the incorrect labeling was.

The Chinese government considers self-governed Taiwan as its territory and has kept open the possibility of the use of force to unify with the island. But Taiwan sees itself as different from the Chinese mainland, with its own constitution and elected leadership.

Geopolitical Disputes

Disputes in the South China Sea sometimes intensify - just recently over the weekend, when ships from Chinese authorities and the Philippine government figured in another encounter.

Philippine authorities claimed a Chinese ship of deliberately ramming and deploying water jets at a government-owned Philippine craft.

But Chinese officials claimed the encounter happened after the vessel from the Philippines disregarded multiple alerts and "came too close to" the Chinese vessel.

Previous Precedents

The Philippines and Vietnamese authorities are also especially concerned to portrayals of the South China Sea in cartographic materials.

The Barbie movie from last year was banned in Vietnam and edited in the Philippines for showing a maritime chart with the nine dash line.

The announcement from customs authorities did not say where the confiscated materials were planned for distribution. The country provides much of the international products, from holiday decorations to stationery.

The confiscation of "problematic maps" by China's border authorities is not uncommon - though the quantity of the maps intercepted in the Shandong region significantly exceeds previous confiscations. Merchandise that do not meet standards at the border control are destroyed.

In March, customs officers at an airport in Qingdao seized a shipment of 143 navigation charts that contained "apparent inaccuracies" in the sovereign limits.

In August, border authorities in Hebei province intercepted two "violating cartographic materials" that, in addition to other issues, included a "misdrawing" of the Tibetan border.