Ma Ying-jeou
Ma Ying-jeou. 馬英九 | |
|---|---|
| File:馬英九1.JPG | |
| President-elect of the Republic of China | |
| Assuming office 20 May 2008 | |
| Vice President | Vincent Siew |
| Succeeding | Chen Shui-bian |
| Mayor of Taipei | |
| In office 25 December 1998 – 25 December 2006 | |
| Preceded by | Chen Shui-bian |
| Succeeded by | Hau Lung-pin |
| Chairman of the Kuomintang | |
| In office 16 July 2005 – 13 February 2007 | |
| Preceded by | Lien Chan |
| Succeeded by | Wu Po-hsiung |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 13 July 1950 Hong Kong` |
| Nationality |  Republic of China |
| Political party | Template:KMT |
| Spouse | Christine Chow Ma |
| Alma mater | National Taiwan University New York University Harvard University |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Website | www.ma19.net |
Template:Chinese name Ma Ying-jeou (simplified Chinese: 马英九; traditional Chinese: 馬英九; Hanyu Pinyin: Mǎ Yīngjiǔ; Tongyong Pinyin: Ma Yingjiou; Wade–Giles: Ma Ying-chiu) (born July 13, 1950 in Hong Kong) is the President-elect of the Republic of China.(Taiwan), a former Justice Minister, former Mayor of Taipei, and the former Chairman of the Kuomintang (KMT) from 2005 to 2007.
Ma was elected Mayor of Taipei in 1998 and re-elected in 2002. He was elected Chairman of the Kuomintang by party members on July 16, 2005. He announced his resignation on February 13, 2007 after being indicted by the Taiwan High Prosecutors Office on charges of misuse of Mayoral funds during his tenure as the mayor of Taipei - he was found not guilty in the first and second trials, but the case was appealed to the Supreme Court. Ma subsequently won the presidency in the ROC presidential election of 2008.[1]
Personal background
Ma was born in Hong Kong (Kwong Wah Hospital in Kowloon), then a British overseas territory, to father Ma Ho-ling from Xiangtan, Hunan. When he was one year old, his family moved to Taiwan.
He earned a law degree from National Taiwan University in 1972. He completed additional studies in the United States, first earning an LL.M. from New York University Law School and then an S.J.D. degree from Harvard Law School. After receiving his S.J.D., Ma returned to Taiwan in 1981 to teach law.
Ma is married with two daughters from his marriage to Christine Chou (Chou Mei-ching). Their names are Lesley W. Ma (Ma Wei-chung, 馬唯中) and Kelly Ma (Ma Yuan-chung, 馬元中) [2] He speaks Mandarin Chinese and English fluently. Ma also learned how to speak Hakka and Taiwanese.
Rise in politics
Ma Ying-jeou started working in Taiwan's presidential palace under President Chiang Ching-kuo after earning his S.J.D., eventually becoming one of Chiang's personal translators. Ma was later promoted to the chair of the Research, Development, and Evaluation Commission under the Executive Yuan at the age of 38, becoming the youngest cabinet member in the ROC government.
Ma was deputy secretary-general of the KMT from 1984 to 1988, also serving for a period as deputy of the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC), a cabinet-level body in charge of cross-straits relations. President Lee Teng-hui appointed him ROC Justice Minister in 1993. Ma was relieved of his post in 1996. After a short stint as a minister without portfolio, Ma returned to academia, and most people at the time believed his political career to have effectively ended.
Mayoralty
In 1998, the KMT, fielded Ma to challenge the then-incumbent Taipei mayor Chen Shui-bian of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), who was seeking reelection. Despite Chen's public approval rating of over 80%, Chen was defeated. In the 2000 Presidential Election, Ma remained loyal to the KMT and supported its candidate, Lien Chan, over James Soong, who had bolted from the party and was running as an independent. The competition between Lien and Soong split the Pan-Blue vote and allowed his former rival Chen to win the presidential election with less than 50% of the popular vote. The election result, combined with other factors, incited a great deal of anger against Ma when he tried to dissuade discontented Lien and Soong supporters from protesting by appealing to them in his dual capacities as Taipei City mayor and high-ranking KMT member.
Ma was able to repair the political damage and, in December 2002, he became the leading figure in the KMT by easily winning reelection as mayor of Taipei with the support of 64% of Taipei voters, while DPP challenger Lee Ying-yuan, received 36%. His solid victory, especially in light of opposition from both President Chen and former President and KMT Chairman Lee Teng-hui, led many to speculate about his chances as the KMT candidate for the 2004 presidential elections, although nothing came of it.
Ma again dissuaded angry Pan-Blue supporters from protesting following the very close re-election victory of President Chen in 2004 after 3-19 shooting incident. Ma chose not to join in calls to challenge or contest the election. Ma also avoided associating himself with claims that the assassination was staged.
Ma suffered some political damage as a result of the SARS epidemic in early 2003 and was criticized for not mobilizing the Taipei city government quickly enough. Flooding in metropolitan Taipei in 2004 also led to public questioning of his leadership and caused Ma's approval rating to slide.
During his time as Taipei's mayor, Ma had many conflicts with the central government over such matters as health insurance rates and control of the water supply during the drought. Ma also was implicated in a scandal of Taipei Bank stock releases in 2003; however, the case was dismissed by the Taipei prosecutor after an investigation. He was strongly criticized by the DPP for not allowing the ROC national flag to be flown along with a PRC flag during a cross-strait soccer match held in Taipei. Ma responded that he was merely following Olympic protocol, which only officially recognizes the Chinese Taipei Olympic Flag, and forbids ROC national flags from being shown in an Olympic Game Stadium.
His initiatives in administering the city of Taipei include changing the transliterations of street names and the Taipei Rapid Transit System's line and station names into Hanyu Pinyin, as opposed to Tongyong Pinyin. Ma has expressed mild support for Chinese reunification and opposition to Taiwan independence. He opposed the 2004 referendum, which had been widely criticized by the U.S. and PRC. Nevertheless, his opposition to the Anti-Secession Law of the People's Republic of China (while other leaders of his party remained silent on the issue) led him to be banned from visiting Hong Kong to make a public speaking tour in 2005.[3] He also criticized the PRC for the Tian'anmen crackdown.
Ma's cross-political following has led some to note him as a rare example of relative civility in the notoriously rough and tumble world of Taiwanese politics. Ma has generally avoided being accused of using the vitriolic and sometimes offensive rhetoric common in Taiwanese political debate. His academic background and bearing have helped cultivate the image of Ma as an honest, dispassionate technocrat. Despite this reputation, and his wooden speaking style and shy demeanor, Ma is also considered a charismatic figure and is popular among women and youth. On the other hand, Ma's critics claim that Ma, overeager to appear unbiased and/or neutral, is overly indecisive and lacks bold vision. Ma is often accused of avoiding being out in front on some of the more vigorous or controversial criticisms of President Chen or opposing parties, or involving himself in intra-party disputes. Among these critics, Ma has been referred to as a "non-stick pan" or "Teflon-man." Recently there has also been some criticism of his stumping for election candidates suspected of and later indicted for corruption charges. Many in the Pan-Green Coalition expressed opinions that Ma misled voters by lending his clean charismatic image to unscrupulous candidates in his own party.
In recent years, Ma has increasingly employed Taiwanese (Hoklo) in public speaking, perhaps to avoid backlash for his parents' mainland origin, and he has called himself a "child of Bangka (Wanhua)," identifying himself with the historic district of Taipei where he grew up. Others claim that Ma's mainland Chinese ancestry will further alienate members of the KMT who are "light-blue" vs. the pro-unification "deep-blue." However, Ma seems less polarizing in this sense than Lien Chan or other older KMT figures who did not grow up in Taiwan and are regarded by some as elitist about their ancestry.
KMT chairmanship
Election
Ma's prestige increased after the loss by Lien Chan in 2004 ROC Presidential Election as he is widely seen as the natural successor of Lien Chan. His handling of the post-election demonstrations of the Pan-Blue Coalition, in which he at one point sent riot police to control the demonstrations of his pan-blue party supporters, was generally seen as impartial. In 2005, Ma and Wang Jin-pyng were candidates in the first competitive election for KMT chairmanship. On 5 April 2005, in an exclusive interview with CTV talk show host Sisy Chen, Ma said he wished to lead the opposition Kuomintang with Wang, if he were elected its chairman, as their support bases are complementary. On July 16, 2005, Ma defeated Wang by a 72% to 28% margin, a margin larger than anticipated by either camp or news sources, despite Wang's receiving a last-minute endorsement by People First Party (PFP) chairman James Soong, who had retained significant following within the KMT. Some, particularly the supporters of Wang Jin-pyng, accuse Ma of unfairly implying that Wang is involved in "black gold" and criticized Ma's aides for being rude to Wang during the campaign. After the election, Ma had stated repeatedly that he wishes Wang to remain as first-ranked deputy chairman. Wang, however, has so far rebuffed the gesture, instead stating that he wishes to serve as "permanent volunteer." Wang has, indeed, accepted a party post that is incompatible with vice chairmanship, effectively ending the possibility that he would be vice chairman, although after meeting with Wang, Ma had stated that he would "leave the position open" for Wang. Ma has also repeatedly stated that he had no plans to resign from the Taipei mayorship, even after he formally took over the chairmanship from incumbent Lien Chan during the 17th Party Congress of the KMT in August 2005.
Immediately after Ma won the chairmanship election, he started selling several KMT assets, despite numerous complaints from pan-green politicians. Though Ma repeatedly claims that the party finances are in a poor state, he has not perceptibly limited the large subsidies the KMT gives to its members running for office. KMT finances were also used to pay for the costs of an anti-Chen demonstration, held in March 2006. His recent trips abroad are being financed with a combination of Taipei city money and KMT money.
Three-in-one election, 2005
Led by Ma Ying-jeou, the Kuomintang made a resounding win in the three-in-one election held on December 3, 2005. The KMT gained 6 more seats in the mayoral/magistratical race, from 8 seats in the last election, to a total of 14 seats. Before the election, Ma swore that he would quit the chairmanship if his party could not win over half of the seats, which was a first for a KMT chairman. It was a decisive win for Ma Ying-jeou as well, since he took over the party chairmanship only 110 days before. In the election, the KMT won back the counties of Taipei and Yilan, and the city of Chiayi, which had been the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)'s strongholds for over twenty years. It was the first time in many years that the KMT regained popularity as far south as Cho-Shui River (Zhuo-Shui River). Quoting again his famous quote, Ma said, "we should only be excited about it for one evening." (Then we should go back to work).
ROC presidential election, 2008
On the same day he resigned as chairman of the KMT, Ma also announced his intention to run in the 2008 presidential elections. He was the official nominee of the Kuomintang for the 2008 Presidential Elections.
Ma led a visit to India and Singapore in June of 2007 to increase bilateral exchanges as well as to gain legitimacy and experience for his 2008 Presidential bid.
Ma's vice-presidential running mate was former premier Vincent Siew. Siew was also Lien Chan's running mate in the 2000 elections.[4]
Ma officially won on March 22, 2008 with 58% of the vote, ending 8 years of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) rule. Ma won with 7,658,724 votes against Hsieh's 5,445,239 votes. Ma's overwhelming victory in the presidential election gave him political mandate to make changes in Taiwan.[5]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Percentage | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| President | Vice president | ||||
| File:White sun, blue sky.svg Kuomintang | Ma Ying-Jeou | Vincent Siew | 7,658,724 | 58.45% | |
| This file may be deleted after Tuesday, 1 April 2008. Democratic Progressive Party | Frank Hsieh | Su Tseng-Chang | 5,445,239 | 41.55% | |
| Total | 13,103,963 | 100.00% | |||
Political positions
View on Taiwan independence
In February 2006, while visiting Europe, Ma said that although he and the KMT favor eventual reunification, the KMT respects the opinions of Taiwanese people, and independence is a choice for the people of Taiwan. This caused widespread criticism within the party and from the mainland. In a December 2005 Newsweek International interview when asked about unification, Ma stated that "for our party, the eventual goal is reunification, but we don't have a timetable," explaining that he meant it was a choice for Taiwan but a choice for the Chinese KMT. [6] Perhaps to deflect heavy criticism from the Pan-Green Coalition the KMT later made an advertisement in the Liberty Times recognizing that independence is an option for the Taiwanese people. Wang Jin-pyng praised Ma for the policy shift since Wang himself made a similar statement during the 2004 election, but James Soong said he was "shocked" and Lien Chan said he was never consulted. This event actually won some welcome voices from Southern Taiwan where voters customarily favor the Pan-Green Coalition. One top KMT official said "we might as well let the measles out now so that we will be immune to it when election year comes close, because reunification or independence can be a hot topic by then."
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Ma clarified later that the current KMT policy of retaining the status quo has not changed and has reiterated this position several times; further he also has reiterated his party's support of the one-China policy. Ma has defined the status quo as the "Five No's." During a visit to the United States in March 2006, he proposed a "proactive" approach to cross-strait relations which he called the "Five Do's."
On March 17, 2008, Ma called Taiwan a "sovereign country" [7] and threatened to boycott the Beijing Olympics if elected should the 2008 unrest in Tibet spiral out of control.[8]
Position on cross-strait relations
Ma Ying-jeou told March 23 2008, one day after his success in Taiwan's presidential election, 2008, he had no immediate plans to visit mainland China and would work to fulfill his campaign pledge to improve relations with the mainland, starting direct flights, allowing more mainland tourists to visit and helping the island's financial industry go to the mainland.[9]
Scandals and criticism
Mayoral scandals
While often nicknamed as “Teflon pot” for his extreme preservation of personal image, Ma was nonetheless caught in some political controversies despite the preferential treatment he enjoys with the local press. A series of mishaps during his tenure as the Mayor of Taipei, including the administration problems that enlarged the extent of the Typhoon Nari (納莉風災),[10] the Shutdown of Hoping Hospital (和平封院事件),[11] the Phosgene Incident (捷運光氣事件), the Scalping Incident (捷運扯頭皮事件) and the Human Ball Scandal (邱小妹人球事件), [12]impaired Ma’s reputation. However, Ma maneuvered through these incidents relatively unscathed.
One of his latest case is the Beitou Cable Car Link. According to Taiwan Laws, Taipei Municipal Government is the sole sponsor of this disputed BOT. However, the local press kept closing up on the detention of Yen Wan-chin, the allegedly bribed deputy Minister of Interior who staged a hunger strike for his innocence, for a few days, and played it down as independent critics began to put up their findings about wrongdoings of Taipei Municipal Government and question Ma’s responsibility as the Mayor.[citation needed]
One of Ma's most satisfactory mayoral construction was the Maokong Gondola. However, the frequent breakdown of the gondola caused the residents' distaste of the new transportation system. Only 14% of the Taipei City residents were satisfied with it.[13] It even led to protests.[14] The Taiwan Environmental Information Center (台灣環境資訊協會) states that the choice to use the gondola used in the temperate zone in the tropical zone shows the failure of the Taipei City government led by Ma.[15]
Special Expenses scandal
On November 14, 2006, Ma was questioned by prosecutors over his alleged misuse of "special expenses" as Taipei mayor. At the same time, rumors surfaced that former party chairman Lien Chen would run in the presidential election of 2008. The incident may have affected the clean image of Ma and his political future. On the next day, Ma admitted one of his aides forged receipts to claim Ma's expenses as Taipei mayor, and apologized for the latest political scandal.[16]
On February 13, 2007, Ma was indicted by the Taiwan High Prosecutors Office on charges of allegedly embezzling approximately NT$11 million (US$339,000), regarding the issue of "special expenses" while he was mayor of Taipei.[17] The prosecutor's office said that Ma had allegedly used government funds for personal use, such as paying for one of his daughter's living expenses while studying abroad and paying for his household utilities. Before that, Ma had admitted personal usage and claims that the special funds were simply a part of his salary[18] but had used all funds for public use or public benefit (charity donations).[19]
Shortly after the indictment, he submitted his resignation as chairman of the Kuomintang, making good on a previous promise to resign if he were ever indicted.[20] The resignation was initially rejected but then accepted by the party's Central Standing Committee before amending a clause that barred members from running for office if charged with a crime.[21] Shortly after the resignation, however, Ma announced his presidential candidacy.
On August 14, 2007, the Taipei District Count found Ma not guilty of corruption, and cleared his name of all charges[22] stating that "Special Expenses" is essentially "Special allowance" which was originally designed to compensate for mayor's "social spending" without actually raising salary.[23] On December 28, 2007, the Taiwan High Court again found Ma not guilty of graft charges.
US green card issue
Democratic Progressive Party candidate Frank Hsieh questioned Ma for his possession of a United States Permanent Resident Card. Ma denied having one and publicly expressed that no members of his family had one.[24] However, the fact that Ma and his wife had applied for green cards and that his sisters and his older daughter Lesley Ma are United States citizens caused controversy as the DPP continued to question Ma's loyalty to the country.[25] In response to the DPP attack on the US citizenship of his sisters, Ma expressed that having a US passport or green card did not mean that someone was not loyal to Taiwan.[25]
A week before the presidential election, incumbent President Chen Shui-bian vowed to quit if Ma could provide legal documents of the invalidation of his green card. The DPP presidential candidate also said that he was willing to withdraw from the race if Ma could prove that his green card was invalidated twenty years ago.[26] Ma responded the next day to the president that he should work on improving Taiwan's economy instead of caring about the election so much, and Ma did not say anything about his green card.[27]
Environmental criticism
Ma has been criticized by many environmental groups. His mayoral construction of the Maokong Gondola was criticized by the Taiwan Environmental Information Center.[15] The construction of the Taipei Arena also drew negative reactions from these groups. The Society of Wilderness (SOW; 荒野保護協會) pointed out that of the three hundred and eighty-four trees that were moved for the construction, more than a hundred already died.[28] The city government said that the ages of the trees are unknown, therefore they are not protected by law. The SOW then responded that according to pictures taken by the United States Air Force in 1947 and 1948, these trees were present already during the Japanese rule era.[28]
During his presidential campaign, Ma participated in one of the debates that discussed many topics, including environmental protection. The Taiwan Academy of Ecology evaluated the policies of both candidates Hsieh and Ma, and the secretary of its workstation in Taipei said that both candidates failed their expectations, but Hsieh has more hope than Ma because Ma's environmental concepts lack considerations of the reality.[29] In February 2008, several environmental groups created a list of commitments for the two candidates to sign. DPP candidate Frank Hsieh agreed on all the items on the list and signed it in March. Ma did not, and emailed the group instead. The Taiwan Environmental Protection Union (TEPU) criticized Ma for ignoring the important issue and not having guts to sign the commitments.[30]
After Ma was elected president on March 22, 2008, the Green Party Taiwan expressed its fear that president-elect Ma focuses too much on improving the economy, that he has ignored many critical environmental issues. The head of the Environmental Quality Protection Foundation also emphasized the importance of environmental protection as one of the factors of economic development.[31]
See also
- Kuomintang
- Politics of the Republic of China
- Elections in the Republic of China
- History of the Republic of China
- Political divisions of the Republic of China
- Political status of Taiwan
- Taipei
References
- ^ Ma Ying-jeou indicted, resigns as KMT chairman, 2007/2/13, Taipei Times
- ^ 馬唯中 & 馬元中: A Look at the First Daughters (Pictures)
- ^ The Standard - Groups told me to lie about visa, says Ma - Metro Section
- ^ "Ma said to pick Siew for 2008 race". The China Post. 2007-06-23. Retrieved 2007-06-23.
{{cite news}}: External link in|publisher=|publisher=(help) - ^ 中時電子報
- ^ Taiwan Mayor on Unification with China - Newsweek: International Editions - MSNBC.com
- ^ "Japan Today - News - Taiwan presidential frontrunner calls island 'sovereign country'". www.japantoday.com. Retrieved 2008-03-19.
- ^ "Taiwan presidential candidate threatens to boycott Beijing Olympics : Sports". www.earthtimes.org. Retrieved 2008-03-19.
- ^ "Taiwan's Ma: No plans to visit China". [CNN]. 2008-03-23. Retrieved 2008-03-23.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ 丘昌泰. "台北市政府防災組織與功能研究：納莉風災的省思" (PDF) (in Traditional Chinese). National Taipei University website. Retrieved 2007-11-15.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ 臺北市政府專案調查小組 (2003-6-12). "台北市立和平醫院處理嚴重急性呼吸道症候群（SARS）事件調查報告" (DOC) (in Traditional Chinese). 台北市政府网站. Retrieved 2007-11-15.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ 張珩轉調市醫總院長, Epoch Times
- ^ 林恕暉 貓纜變懶貓 滿意度僅14％, Liberty Times, 8/1/2007
- ^ 誰的貓空？誰的纜車？—地方居民抗爭全紀錄, Chengchi University, 8/21
- ^ a b Lee Yu-chin 貓纜通車首日故障 爆出市府公共政策問題, Taiwan Environmental Information Center, 7/5/2007
- ^ Mo Yan-chih (2006-11-16). "Ma sorry for `administrative defects'". Taipei Times. Retrieved 2007-02-23.
- ^ Peter Enav (2007-02-13). "Taiwanese opposition leader indicted". Boston.com. Retrieved 2007-02-22.
- ^ Jewel Huang (2006-08-03). "Ma accused of embezzlement". Taipei Times. Retrieved 2007-02-23.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ Mo Yan-chih (2006-11-24). "Ma questioned over donation records". Taipei Times. Retrieved 2007-02-23.
- ^ BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Taiwan opposition leader resigns
- ^ http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071228/wl_nm/taiwan_ma_dc_1
- ^ Channelnewsasia.com
- ^ http://issue.udn.com/960814.txt
- ^ Shih Hsiu-chuan "Hsieh's promptings force Ma onto back foot over green card",, Taipei Times, 1/29/2008
- ^ a b "DPP continues attack on Ma Ying-jeou", Taipei Times, 1/31/2008
- ^ Presidential election 2008: 6 days to go: Chen vows to quit if Ma proves he has no green card, Taipei Times, 3/16/2008
- ^ Presidential election 2008: 5 days to go: Ma responds to president, Taipei Times, 3/17/2008
- ^ a b 老樹爭議 巨蛋環評續保留, Liberty Times
- ^ 環團︰都不及格 但謝還有救, Liberty Times
- ^ 不敢給承諾 環團批馬沒擔當, Liberty Times
- ^ 環團憂馬只重經濟不重環保, Liberty Times, 3/24/2008
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