Chiang Pin-kung (; 16 December 1932 – 10 December 2018) was a Taiwanese politician. He led the
Ministry of Economic Affairs from 1993 to 1996, when he was named Minister of the
Council for Economic Planning and Development
The Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD; ) was a government agency responsible for drafting overall plans for national economic development in Taiwan (ROC). It also assessed development projects, proposals and programmes submitted ...
, where he served until 2000. Chiang was subsequently elected to consecutive terms on the
Legislative Yuan from 2002 to 2008. During his first term as a legislator, Chiang was
Vice President of the Legislative Yuan
The vice president of the Legislative Yuan (Chinese language, Chinese: 立法院副院長) is the Speaker (politics), deputy presiding officer of the Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China. The current Vice President is Tsai Chi-chang, a Demo ...
. He was Chairman of the
Straits Exchange Foundation
The Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF; ; often abbreviated as 海基會) is a semiofficial organization set up by the Government of the Republic of China (Taiwan) to handle technical and/or business matters with the People's Republic of China (P ...
from 2008 to 2012.
Biography
Chiang received his
Ph.D.
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
from the
University of Tokyo
, abbreviated as or UTokyo, is a public research university located in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1877, the university was the first Imperial University and is currently a Top Type university of the Top Global University Project b ...
in 1971. He was Assistant Commercial Attaché at the ROC Embassy in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
from 1967 to 1974, Commercial Attaché at the ROC Consulate General in
Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
from 1974 to 1979, Economic Counsellor at the ROC Embassy in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
from 1979 to 1981, Deputy Director-General of the
Board of Foreign Trade (BOFT) from 1982 to 1983, Secretary-General of the
China External Trade Development Council from 1983 to 1988, and Director-General of the BOFT from 1988 to 1989.
At the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Chiang served as Administrative Vice Minister from 1989 to 1990, Political Vice Minister from 1990 to 1993, and Minister from 1993 to 1996. From 1996 to 2000 he was Chairman of the
Council for Economic Planning and Development
The Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD; ) was a government agency responsible for drafting overall plans for national economic development in Taiwan (ROC). It also assessed development projects, proposals and programmes submitted ...
. In this capacity, he was the
special envoy
Diplomatic rank is a system of professional and social rank used in the world of diplomacy and international relations. A diplomat's rank determines many ceremonial details, such as the order of precedence at official processions, table seating ...
of
Lee Teng-hui at the 1998 and 1999
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region. leader's summits (Lee was, because of pressure from the
People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, not permitted to attend). From 1998 to 2000 he was a
Minister without Portfolio
A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister who does not head a particular ministry. The sinecure is particularly common in countries ruled by coalition governments and a cabinet w ...
.
Family
Chiang was born in Nantō District,
Taichū Prefecture
was one of the administrative divisions of Japanese Taiwan. The prefecture consisted of modern-day Taichung City, Changhua County and Nantou County. It is also the origin of the name of modern-day Taichung. The Taichū Prefecture was the scene ...
,
Japanese Taiwan
The island of Taiwan, together with the Penghu Islands, became a dependency of Japan in 1895, when the Qing dynasty ceded Fujian-Taiwan Province in the Treaty of Shimonoseki after the Japanese victory in the First Sino-Japanese War. The shor ...
. He is married to Mei-Fuey Chen with two sons and one daughter.
Political career
Chiang was
elected to the Legislative Yuan in 2001 and was selected vice president of the legislature, a post he held until the Fifth Legislative Yuan adjourned in 2005. Chiang was re-elected to the Legislative Yuan in
2004 but did not take on the vice president post, which went to the KMT's alliance
People First Party. There were ongoing negotiations for Chiang to join the
cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filing ...
of Premier
Frank Hsieh
Frank Hsieh Chang-ting (; born May 18, 1946) is a Taiwanese politician and former defense attorney. A cofounder of the Democratic Progressive Party, he has served on the Taipei City Council, the Legislative Yuan, as the mayor of Kaohsiung Cit ...
as vice premier, but talks fell apart between the KMT and the administration over Chiang's specific responsibilities for the post.
In March 2005, Chiang led the KMT's first
official delegation to
mainland China
"Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...
since the end of major hostilities in the
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on m ...
in 1949. The delegation paid homage to the 72 martyrs of the
Tenth Revolution in
Huanghuagang before travelling to the
Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum
Dr. Sun Yat-sen's Mausoleum () is situated at the foot of the second peak of Purple Mountain (Nanjing), Purple Mountain in Nanjing, China. Construction of the tomb started in January 1926, and was finished in spring of 1929. The architect was L ...
in
Nanjing
Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...
and to
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
. During the trip, Chiang promoted opening the
three links and economic development.
On 14 March 2007, Chiang became acting chairman of the KMT after
Wu Po-hsiung
Wu Po-hsiung (; born 19 June 1939) is a Taiwanese politician who is a former chairman of the Kuomintang (KMT). He has been the Interior Minister (1984-1988), Mayor of Taipei (1988–1990), Secretary-General to the President (1991–1996), and ...
, who had been acting chairman since
Ma Ying-jeou
Ma Ying-jeou ( zh, 馬英九, born 13 July 1950) is a Hong Kong-born Taiwanese politician who served as president of the Republic of China from 2008 to 2016. Previously, he served as justice minister from 1993 to 1996 and mayor of Taipei fro ...
's resignation earlier in the year, resigned the acting chairmanship so that he could run for chairman in the upcoming party election.
Straits Exchange Foundation
Following the
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...
's landslide win in the presidential election in 2008, Chiang was designated as chairman of the
Straits Exchange Foundation
The Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF; ; often abbreviated as 海基會) is a semiofficial organization set up by the Government of the Republic of China (Taiwan) to handle technical and/or business matters with the People's Republic of China (P ...
, the semi-official body responsible for negotiation on non-political matters with the
People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
. This made him responsible for the front line negotiations with the PRC government. He stepped down from this position in 2012.
Death
Chiang collapsed at a restaurant on 8 December 2018, and was subsequently sent to hospital. He died of multiple organ failure at
Mackay Memorial Hospital
Mackay Memorial Hospital (), established on 26 December 1912, is one of the largest medical centers in Taiwan. It is a private Christian hospital in Zhongshan District, Taipei, Taiwan, mostly associated with George Leslie Mackay, the first mode ...
in Taipei on 10 December 2018.
Honours
*
Order of the Rising Sun, 2nd Class, Gold and Silver Star (2015)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chiang, Pin-Kung
1932 births
2018 deaths
Politicians of the Republic of China on Taiwan from Nantou County
University of Tokyo alumni
Party List Members of the Legislative Yuan
Taiwanese Ministers of Economic Affairs
Taiwanese people of Hoklo descent
Kuomintang Members of the Legislative Yuan in Taiwan
Members of the 5th Legislative Yuan
Members of the 6th Legislative Yuan
Commercial attachés
Deaths from multiple organ failure