Events from the year 2016 in Taiwan.

Incumbents

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

–

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 ...

Tsai Ing-wen Tsai Ing-wen (; born 31 August 1956) is a Taiwanese politician serving as president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) since 2016. A member of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Tsai is the first female president of Taiwan. She served as ...

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

–

Wu Den-yih Wu may refer to: States and regions on modern China's territory *Wu (state) (; och, *, italic=yes, links=no), a kingdom during the Spring and Autumn Period 771–476 BCE ** Suzhou or Wu (), its eponymous capital ** Wu County (), a former county i ...

, Chen Chien-jen * Premier –

Mao Chi-kuo Mao Chi-kuo (; born 4 October 1948 in Fenghua, Chekiang) is a Taiwanese politician, who served as the Premier, the President of Executive Yuan from 2014 to 2016. Early life Mao was born on 4 October 1948, in Fenghua, Chekiang Province. ...

Chang San-cheng Chang San-cheng or Simon Chang () (born 24 June 1954) is a Taiwanese politician who was Premier of the Republic of China from 1 February 2016 until 20 May 2016, appointed by President Ma Ying-jeou. Before assuming the Premiership, he had serve ...

Lin Chuan Lin Chuan (; born 13 December 1951) is a Taiwanese economist and politician who served as Premier of the Republic of China (Taiwan) from 2016 to 2017 under President Tsai Ing-wen. He served as Minister of Budget, Accounting and Statistics and M ...

* Vice Premier –

Woody Duh Woody Duh Tyzz-jiun (; born 23 October 1959) is a Taiwanese politician, who was the Vice Premier of the Republic of China from 1 February 2016 to 20 May 2016. He was the Governor of Fujian Province. He was the Minister of Economic Affairs (MOEA ...

Lin Hsi-yao Lin Hsi-yao (; born 25 December 1961) is a Taiwanese politician. Early life Lin studied civil engineering at National Taiwan University, where he earned a bachelor's and degree and a master's degree in the subject in 1983 and 1990, respectively ...

Events

January

* 1 January – The opening of Taiwan New Cultural Movement Memorial Hall in Datong District,

Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...

. * 10 January – The launch of Islamic Association of Taiwan in

Hualien City Hualien City (; Wade-Giles: Hua¹-lien² Shih⁴; Hokkien POJ: ''Hoa-lian-chhī'' or ''Hoa-liân-chhī'') is a county-administered city and the county seat of Hualien County, Taiwan. It is located on the east coast of Taiwan on the Pacific Oc ...

Hualien County Hualien County ( Mandarin Wade–Giles: Hua¹-lien² Hsien⁴; Pīnyīn: ''Huālián Xiàn''; Hokkien POJ: ''Hoa-lian-koān'' or ''Hoa-liân-koān''; Hakka PFS: ''Fâ-lièn-yen''; Amis: ''Kalingko'') is a county on the east coast of Taiwan. I ...

. * 16 January **

2016 Taiwanese presidential election Presidential elections were held in Taiwan on 16 January 2016. Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidate Tsai Ing-wen with her independent running mate Chen Chien-jen won over Eric Chu of the Kuomintang (KMT) and James Soong of the People ...

. **

2016 Taiwanese legislative election The 2016 Taiwanese legislative election was held, along with the presidential election, on 16 January 2016 for all 113 seats in the Legislative Yuan. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) led by Tsai Ing-wen, who also won the presidential elect ...

. ** Resignation of Kuomintang spokesperson Yang Wei-chung (楊偉中). ** Resignation of Kuomintang Chairman

Eric Chu Eric Chu Li-luan (; born on 7 June 1961) is a Taiwanese politician. He was born into a political family with strong Kuomintang (KMT) ties, and served as Vice Premier of the Republic of China, under Premier Wu Den-yih. Prior to this, Chu served ...

. ** Resignation of Kuomintang vice-chairman

Hau Lung-bin Hau Lung-pin (; born 22 August 1952) is a Taiwanese politician. As a member of the New Party, he was elected to the Legislative Yuan in 1995, and resigned his seat to lead the Environmental Protection Administration in 2001. Hau stepped down ...

February

* 1 February ** Swearing-in of new cabinet led by Premier

. **

Su Jia-chyuan Su Jia-chyuan (or Su Chia-chyuan; ; born 22 October 1956) is a Taiwanese politician of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). As the first non-Kuomintang President of the Legislative Yuan, Su is an at-large legislator and previously Commissi ...

sworn-in as Speaker of Legislative Yuan. * 5 February –

Mainland Affairs Council The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) is a cabinet-level administrative agency under the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China in Taiwan. The MAC is responsible for the planning, development, and implementation of the cross-strait relations ...

and

Taiwan Affairs Office The Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council is an administrative agency under the State Council of Mainland China. It is responsible for setting and implementing guidelines and policies related to the Republic of China (Taiwan), as stipul ...

had their first conversation via the newly establish hotline connecting both heads of the offices. * 6 February – The 6.4 Taiwan earthquake affected the southwest part of the island with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII (''Very strong''), killing 117 and injuring 550.

March

* 26 March –

2016 Kuomintang chairmanship election The 2016 Kuomintang chairmanship by-election () was held on 26 March 2016 in Taiwan. This was the seventh direct election of the party leader in Kuomintang history. All registered, due-paying KMT party members were eligible to vote. History The p ...

April

* 2 April – The official opening of

Hushan Dam The Hushan Dam () is a dam in Douliu City, Yunlin County, Taiwan. It is the newest dam in Taiwan. History and objectives The planning of the dam started already in 1979 and but was approved by Executive Yuan only in 2001. The stated goals of ...

in Douliu City,

Yunlin County Yunlin County ( Mandarin pinyin: ''Yúnlín Xiàn''; Taigi POJ: ''Hûn-lîm-koān''; Hakka PFS: ''Yùn-lìm-yen'') is a county in western Taiwan. Yunlin County borders the Taiwan Strait to the west, Nantou County to the east, Changhua County ...

. * 7 April – The designation of 7 April to be the ''Freedom of Speech Day''. * 18 April – Wan An Exercise in

New Taipei New Taipei City is a special municipality located in northern Taiwan. The city is home to an estimated population of 3,974,683 as of 2022, making it the most populous city of Taiwan, and also the second largest special municipality by area, b ...

Taoyuan City Taoyuan () is a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan) located in northwestern Taiwan, neighboring New Taipei City to the north-east, Yilan County to the south-east, and Hsinchu County to the south-west. Taoyuan Distr ...

, Yilan County, Hsinchu County, Keelung and

Hsinchu City Hsinchu (, Chinese: 新竹, Pinyin: ''Xīnzhú'', Wade–Giles: ''Hsin¹-chu²'') is a city located in northwestern Taiwan. It is the most populous city in Taiwan Province not among the special municipalities, with estimated 450,655 inhabi ...

. * 24 April – The establishment of Taiwan Muslim Association at At-Taqwa Mosque in

Dayuan District Dayuan District (), formerly known as Dayuan Township () is a coastal district in northwestern Taoyuan City, Taiwan. History Dayuan District was originally named ''Toa-khu-hng'' (), literally means a vast (大) vegetable garden (坵園) as an o ...

May

* 9 May – The opening of

Taroko Park The SKM Park is an amusement park and outlet in Cianjhen District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan. It is owned by Shin Kong Mitsukoshi. SKM Park is positioned as an "international lifestyle complex" with restaurants, lifestyle theme stores, and entertain ...

Cianjhen District Cianjhen District () is a district in Kaohsiung City, Taiwan. It covers an area of and is subdivided into 59 villiages. The District has a population is 180,828, as of May 2022. It is the fifth-most populated district in Kaohsiung, with a popu ...

, Kaohsiung. * 12 May ** Resignation en masse of Executive Yuan led by Premier

. ** Agricultural cooperation agreement with

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

signed in Taipei. * 18 May – Appointment of

Hau Lung-pin Hau Lung-pin (; born 22 August 1952) is a Taiwanese politician. As a member of the New Party, he was elected to the Legislative Yuan in 1995, and resigned his seat to lead the Environmental Protection Administration in 2001. Hau stepped down f ...

Jason Hu Jason Hu (; born 15 May 1948) is a Taiwanese politician. He was the mayor of Taichung as provincial city in 2001-2010 and as special municipality in 2010–2014. He is a member of the Kuomintang (KMT), and has been the Vice Chairman of the p ...

and

Lin Junq-tzer Lin Junq-tzer (; born 1944) is a Taiwanese politician who has served as the Governor of Taiwan Province from 26 February 2010 to 20 May 2016. Early life A Hakka born in Hsinchu, Lin obtained his bachelor's degree in business administration fro ...

as Vice Chairpersons of

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 ...

. * 20 May ** The inauguration of

as the President of the Republic of China at the Presidential Office Building in Taipei. ** The appointment of Cheng Shu-cheng (曾旭正) as the Deputy Minister of National Development Council. ** The appointment of Tsai Mi-ching as the Deputy Minister of Science and Technology. ** The appointment of

Weng Chang-liang Weng Chang-liang (; born 28 May 1965) is a Taiwanese politician. He is the incumbent Magistrate of Chiayi County since 25 December 2018. Political career Active in the Wild Lily student movement, Weng worked for the Chiayi County Government bef ...

(翁章梁) as the Deputy Minister of

Council of Agriculture The Council of Agriculture (COA, ) is the official government body in the Republic of China (Taiwan) under the Executive Yuan in charged with overseeing affairs related to agriculture, forestry, fishery, animal husbandry and food affairs. CAO is ...

. ** The appointment of Kuo Kuo-wen as the Deputy Minister of

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the la ...

. ** The appointment of Lee Wen-chung and Liu Shu-lin (劉樹林) as the Deputy Ministers of

Veterans Affairs Council The Veterans Affairs Council (VAC; ) is a branch of the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China (Taiwan) with "responsibilities to assist in education assistance, employment assistance, medical care, home care and other general services" for reti ...

. * 25 May – Tsai Ing-wen sworn in as

Chairperson The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

of Democratic Progressive Party for another term. * 27 May – The inauguration of

Wanhua Lin's Mansion The Wanhua Lin Mansion () is a historic mansion in Wanhua District, Taipei, Taiwan. History The construction of the mansion started in 1932 and completed in 1935. It used deep foundation and reinforced concrete in its construction process wit ...

Wanhua District Wanhua District, known in Taiwanese Hokkien as Báng-kah khu and historically as "Monga" or "Monka", is a district in Taipei, Taiwan. It is Taipei's oldest district. The district is home to historic buildings such as the Bangka Lungshan Temple, ...

June

* 25 June – the Taoyuan Flight Attendants Union, representing some 2500 cabin crew from China Airlines, staged the first strike in Taiwanese aviation history. A total of 122 China Airlines-passenger flights from

Taoyuan International Airport Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport is an international airport serving Taipei and northern Taiwan. Located about west of Taipei in Dayuan District, Taoyuan, the airport is Taiwan's largest. It was also the busiest airport in Taiwan before t ...

and

Taipei Songshan Airport Taipei Songshan Airport is a regional airport and military airbase located in Songshan District, Taipei, Taiwan. The airport covers an area of . The civilian section of Songshan Airport has scheduled flights to domestic destinations in Taiwa ...

were cancelled as a result. The strike ended within a day following government intervention, replacement of top officials, and management-representatives conditionally agreeing to all seven demands from the union.

July

* 1 July ** The opening of

Nangang Station Nangang () is a railway and metro station in Taipei, Taiwan served by Taiwan High Speed Rail, Taiwan Railways Administration and Taipei Metro. The station is served by the fastest HSR express services of the ''1 series''. History Nangang S ...

Taiwan High Speed Rail Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR) is the high-speed railway of Taiwan consisting of one line that runs approximately along the west coast, from the capital Taipei to the southern city of Kaohsiung. With construction and operations managed by a pri ...

in Nangang District, Taipei. ** Hsiung Feng III missile mishap off Penghu, killing 1 and injuring 3. * 3 July – The opening of

Hamasen Museum of Taiwan Railway The Hamasen Museum of Taiwan Railway () is a railway museum in Pier-2 Art Center, Yancheng District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan. History The museum building was originally constructed as a railway station. In 2003, the museum building was declared a hi ...

in Yancheng District, Kaohsiung. * 7 July – Typhoon Nepartak makes landfall, killing three people and injuring 142. * 19 July – Bus

accident An accident is an unintended, normally unwanted event that was not directly caused by humans. The term ''accident'' implies that nobody should be blamed, but the event may have been caused by unrecognized or unaddressed risks. Most researche ...

killing 24 Mainland Chinese tourists with its Taiwanese driver and tour guide. * 23 July – The official opening of the High-Heel Wedding Church in Budai Township,

Chiayi County Chiayi County ( Mandarin pinyin: ''jiā yì xiàn''; Hokkien POJ: ''Ka-gī-koān'') is a county in southwestern Taiwan surrounding but not including Chiayi City. It is the sixth largest county in Taiwan. Name The former Chinese placename wa ...

August

* 22–26 August – The 32nd

Han Kuang Exercise The Han Kuang Exercise () is the annual military exercise of the Republic of China Armed Forces in Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu for combat readiness in the event of an attack from the People's Liberation Army of the People's Republic of C ...

. * 26 August – The opening of

Taichung Literature Museum The Taichung Literature Museum (TLM; ) is a museum in West District, Taichung, Taiwan. History The museum buildings were originally constructed as a police dormitory in 1934 during the Japanese rule of Taiwan. In 2009, the buildings were design ...

West District West District may refer to: __NOTOC__ China * West District (Zhongshan), in Guangdong * West District (Panzhihua), in Sichuan India * West Delhi * West Sikkim district Taiwan * West District, Chiayi, in Chiayi City * West District, Taichung, in ...

Taichung Taichung (, Wade–Giles: ''Tʻai²-chung¹'', pinyin: ''Táizhōng''), officially Taichung City, is a special municipality located in central Taiwan. Taichung has approximately 2.8 million residents and is the second most populous city of Ta ...

September

* 5 September – Kaohsiung and

Panama City Panama City ( es, Ciudad de Panamá, links=no; ), also known as Panama (or Panamá in Spanish), is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has an urban population of 880,691, with over 1.5 million in its metropolitan area. The city is locat ...

signed sister city agreement. * 13 September –

Typhoon Meranti Typhoon Meranti, known in the Philippines as Super Typhoon Ferdie, was one of the most intense tropical cyclones on record. Impacting the Batanes in the Philippines, Taiwan, as well as Fujian Province in September 2016, Meranti formed as a trop ...

made landfall in Southern Taiwan, killing 1. * 17–25 September – 2016 OEC Kaohsiung * 27 September – Typhoon Megi made landfall in Eastern Taiwan, killing 4.

November

* 1 November – The merging of National Hsinchu University of Education with

National Tsing Hua University National Tsing Hua University (NTHU; ) is a public research university in Hsinchu City, Taiwan. National Tsing Hua University was first founded in Beijing. After the Chinese Civil War, the then-president of the university, Mei Yiqi, and othe ...

. * 16 November – The opening of DONG Energy branch office in Taiwan. * 22 November –

TransAsia Airways TransAsia Airways (TNA, until January 1992 known by its Chinese-translated name Foshing Airlines;For historical pictures with "Foshing Airlines" on it, see: ) was a Taiwanese airline based in Neihu District in Taipei. Though the company starte ...

ceased operations. * 24 November – Chien-Cheng Circle started to be demolished.

December

* 10 December – The opening of Ama Museum in Datong District, Taipei. * 12 December – Start of the

2017 IIHF Women's World Championship Division II The 2017 IIHF Women's World Championship Division II was three international ice hockey tournaments organised by the International Ice Hockey Federation. The Division II Group A tournament was played in Gangneung, South Korea, from 2 to 8 April 2 ...

qualification round. * 20 December – São Tomé and Príncipe terminated

diplomatic relations Diplomacy comprises spoken or written communication by representatives of states (such as leaders and diplomats) intended to influence events in the international system.Ronald Peter Barston, ''Modern diplomacy'', Pearson Education, 2006, p. 1 ...

with the ROC. * 30 December – The opening of Chaoma Sports Center in

Xitun District Xitun District or Situn District (, literally "western village") is the second-most populated district of Taichung, Taiwan. It is located on the western side of the city. Once considered part of the countryside, the district has seen rapid growt ...

Deaths

*11 January – , 93, Taiwanese

comfort woman Comfort women or comfort girls were women and girls forced into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army in occupied countries and territories before and during World War II. The term "comfort women" is a translation of the Japanese '':ja: ...

. *15 January – , 66, Taiwanese businessman, heart attack. *20 January – Chang Yung-fa, 88, Taiwanese businessman (

Evergreen Group The Evergreen Group () is the organizational designation used by a Taiwan-based conglomerate of shipping, transportation, and associated service companies. The Evergreen Group arose in 1975 from the diversification of the original Evergreen Mar ...

). *17 February – Liu Wan-lai, 87, Taiwanese translator. *26 February – Loh I-Cheng, 92, Taiwanese diplomat. *10 March – Fangge Dupan, 89, Taiwanese poet. *18 March – Kong Jaw-sheng, 60, Taiwanese banker, chairman of the FSC (2004–2006), heart attack. *1 April **

Kao Ching-yuen Kao Ching-yuen (; 24 May 1929 – March 2016, aged 86) was a Taiwanese businessman. Kao was born to a poor family in Gakkō Village, Hokumon District, Tainan Prefecture, Japanese-era Taiwan (modern-day Syuejia, Tainan). Kao began working upon ...

, 87, Taiwanese businessman (

Uni-President Enterprises Corporation Uni-President Enterprises Corporation () is an international food conglomerate based in Tainan, Taiwan. It is the largest food production company in Taiwan as well as Asia, and has a significant market share in dairy products, foods and snacks, ...

) (death announced on this date). **, 98, Taiwanese academic administrator, President of Central Police University (1966–1973) and

Tunghai University Tunghai University (THU; ) is the oldest private university in Taiwan, established in 1955. It was founded by the United Board for Christian Higher Education in Asia (UBCHEA). It is located in Xitun District, Taichung, Taiwan. According to ''Ti ...

(1978–1992). *8 April –

Wei Chueh Wei Chueh (, 1928 – 8 April 2016) was a Chinese ''Bhikshu'' (Buddhist monk) from Taiwan. He is the founder of the Chung Tai Shan monastery and Buddhist order. Wei Chueh is often credited for reviving the traditional teachings of Chan Buddhism. ...

, 88, Taiwanese Buddhist monk. *21 May –

Ku Chin-shui Ku Chin-shui (, 15 January 1960 – 25 May 2016) was an Amis Taiwanese decathlete and pole vaulter. He medaled for Chinese Taipei at the Asian Athletics Championships six times, winning one gold medal, two silver medals, and three bronze medals. ...

, 56, Taiwanese aboriginal athlete, plasma cell leukemia. * 27 May – Wang You-theng, 89, Taiwanese entrepreneur, ( Rebar), traffic collision. *29 May – , 56, Taiwanese politician, Mayor of

, lung cancer. *31 May – , 62, Taiwanese businessman (

), heart attack. *1 June –

Wang Jui Wang Hsi-jui (; 25 July 1930 – 1 June 2016), known by his stage name Wang Jui (), was a Taiwanese actor. He won the Golden Bell Award three times. Wang died in Taipei of heart and lung failure on 1 June 2016 at the age of 85. Selected filmo ...

, 85, Taiwanese actor, heart and lung failure. *27 July – Lin Kuo-hua, 80, Taiwanese politician,

MLY A light-year, alternatively spelled light year, is a large unit of length used to express astronomical distances and is equivalent to about 9.46 trillion kilometers (), or 5.88 trillion miles ().One trillion here is taken to be 1012 ...

(1999–2005). *6 August – Chow Lien-hwa, 96, Taiwanese Christian minister. *9 August –

Wang Tuoh Wang Tuoh (; 9 January 1944 – 9 August 2016) was a Taiwanese writer, public intellectual, literary critic, and politician. He was born in , then a small fishing village near the northern port city of Keelung. His name was originally Wang Hung- ...

, 72, Taiwanese writer and politician, complications of a heart attack. * 27 August – , 86, Taiwanese mountaineer, esophageal cancer. * 7 September – , 91, Taiwanese acrobat. * 8 October – Kuo Chin-fa, 72, Taiwanese

Hokkien pop Hokkien pop, also known as Taiwanese Hokkien popular music, T-pop (), Tai-pop, Minnan Pop and Taiwanese song (), is a popular music genre sung in Taiwanese Hokkien and produced mainly in Taiwan. Hokkien pop is most popular amongst Hoklo people in ...

singer, cardiorespiratory failure. * 16 October – Jacques Picoux, 67, French artist, fall. * 8 November –

Ho Chih-chin Ho Chih-chin (; 16 June 1952 – 8 November 2016) was a Taiwanese politician. He was the Minister of Finance from 2006 to 2008. Education and early career Ho obtained his doctoral degree in economics from University of Michigan in the United S ...

, 64, Taiwanese politician, Minister of Finance. * 18 November – Liu Sung-pan, 84, Taiwanese politician,

(1973–2004),

PLY Ply, Pli, Plies or Plying may refer to: Common uses * Ply (layer), typically of paper or wood ** Plywood, made of layers of wood ** Tire ply, a layer of cords embedded in the rubber of a tire Places * Plymouth railway station, England, station ...

(1992–1998). *22 November – Chen Yingzhen, 79, Taiwanese writer. * 28 November – Ng Bi-chu, 88, Taiwanese activist ( 228 Incident), complications of diabetes. *30 November ** Peng Chang-kuei, 98, Taiwanese chef, (

General Tso's chicken General Tso's chicken (; ) is a sweet and spicy deep-fried chicken dish that is served in American Chinese cuisine, North American Chinese restaurants. The dish is named after Zuo Zongtang, formerly romanized "Tso Tsung-t'ang", a Qing dynasty st ...

) pneumonia. **, 43, Taiwanese astrologer. *1 December – Bor-ming Jahn, 76, Taiwanese-French geochemist. *8 December – , 94, Taiwanese agriculturalist. *26 December – Robert Storey, 63, American-born Taiwanese travel writer.

References

{{Asia topic, 2016 in Years of the 21st century in Taiwan

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

2010s in Taiwan