Chen Shui-Bian
(b. 1951), president of the Republic of China. Chen Shui-bian became the president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) on 20 May 2000 in only the second direct popular presidential election held in that country. He ran as an opposition pro–Taiwan independence candidate against Lien Chan, the Guomindang (Nationalist) candidate and James Soong, the Independent candidate. His accession to the presidency was heavily criticized by the officials in Beijing, because they feared he would declare Taiwan an independent and sovereign state.
Chen was born on 18 February 1951 in a poor Taiwanese family in Tainan county in southern Taiwan. In June 1969 he attained the highest possible score on the university entrance examination and entered the prestigious National Taiwan University, where he majored in commercial law. In law school, Chen met his wife, Wu Shu-jen, a woman with a strong sense of Taiwanese nationalism. Soon after graduation, Chen joined the Formosan International Marine and Commercial Law Office, where he worked until 1989, rising to the position of chief lawyer. This position gave him the financial independence to engage in politics.
In 1980, encouraged by his wife and his loyalties to his friends, Chen became a defense lawyer for the leaders of the Tang-wai (Opposition) Party, who had been charged with sedition in the famous "Kaohsiung" incident of 1979. His participation in this lengthy trial aroused him to enter politics on a mission of promoting human rights, democracy, and social justice. During the 1990s, he served on the Taipei City Council and in the Legislative Yuan. He became a leading figure in the opposition party, renamed the Democratic Progressive Party in 1987. His popularity made him and his family the focus of political attacks. His wife was crippled when a truck ran her over in a clearly politically motivated accident. Chen himself served six months in jail on the charge of libel.
In 1994 Chen ran successfully for Taipei mayor. In this position, he attacked corruption, lowered the crime rate, and opened relationships with other countries by establishing sister city programs and hosting international conferences. His improvements earned Taipei a place in Asiaweek's top five best cities in Asia.
Further Reading
Kagan, Richard C. (1998) Mayor Chen Shui-bian. Taipei, Taiwan: Building a Community and a Nation. Taipei, Taiwan: Asia-Pacific Academic Exchange Foundation.
Wachtman, Alan. (1994) Taiwan: Identity and Democratization. New York: M. E. Sharpe.
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