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Kang Ning-hsiang (; born 16 November 1938) is a Taiwanese politician. He was active in the
Tangwai movement The ''Tangwai'' movement, or simply ''Tangwai'' (), was a loosely knit political movement in Taiwan in the mid-1970s and early 1980s. Although the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) had allowed contested elections for a small number of seats in the Legis ...
, and began his political career as a supporter of Huang Hsin-chieh. Kang served in the
Taipei City Council Taipei City Council () is the city council of Taipei, Taiwan. One of the largest Administrative divisions of Taiwan, local councils in Taiwan, the city council is currently composed of 61 councillors, all elected most recently in the 2022 Taiw ...
from 1969 to 1972, when he was first elected to the
Legislative Yuan The Legislative Yuan () is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of China (Taiwan) located in Taipei. The Legislative Yuan is composed of 113 members, who are directly elected for four-year terms by people of the Taiwan Area through a ...
, on which he served three consecutive terms, until 1984. He lost reelection in 1983, and won a fourth term in 1986. Kang was subsequently elected to the
National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...
, but left the office to accept an appointment to the
Control Yuan The Control Yuan is the supervisory and auditory branch of the government of the Republic of China, both during its time in mainland China and Taiwan. Designed as a hybrid of auditor and ombudsman by Taiwanese law, the Control Yuan holds th ...
, a position he held until 2002. He was then successively appointed an administrative deputy minister of national defense, as secretary-general of the
National Security Council A national security council (NSC) is usually an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues and advising chief executives on matters related to national security. An NSC is often headed by a n ...
, and adviser to president
Chen Shui-bian Chen Shui-bian ( zh, t=陳水扁; born 12 October 1950) is a Taiwanese former politician and lawyer who served as the fifth president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) from 2000 to 2008. Chen was the first president from the Democratic Progres ...
. Kang is a founding member of the
Democratic Progressive Party The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is a centre to centre-left Taiwanese nationalist political party in Taiwan. As the dominant party in the Pan-Green Coalition, one of the two main political camps in Taiwan, the DPP is currently the ...
, though his party membership was suspended during his tenure on the Control Yuan.


Education

Born in 1938, Kang was raised in Wanhua and graduated from
National Chung Hsing University National Chung Hsing University (NCHU; ; lit. National Resurgence University) is a comprehensive research university in South District, Taichung, Taiwan. Currently, NCHU is among the four universities of the Taiwan Comprehensive University Sys ...
, where he studied public administration.


Political career

Kang began his political career while Taiwan was still under
martial law Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...
and is considered an early leader of the ''
Tangwai The ''Tangwai'' movement, or simply ''Tangwai'' (), was a loosely knit political movement in Taiwan in the mid-1970s and early 1980s. Although the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) had allowed contested elections for a small number of seats in the Legi ...
'' movement. He ran Huang Hsin-chieh's 1969 legislative election campaign, and serving as an independent on the
Taipei City Council Taipei City Council () is the city council of Taipei, Taiwan. One of the largest Administrative divisions of Taiwan, local councils in Taiwan, the city council is currently composed of 61 councillors, all elected most recently in the 2022 Taiw ...
before contesting a legislative seat himself in 1972, which he won. He ran on a social welfare platform and sought to increase the representation of native Taiwanese in the government. Kang was one of two independent candidates to receive formal warnings from the
Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...
while campaigning. The KMT believed that Kang's positions were too critical of the government, and threatened to suspend his run for office. In his first national-level election, Kang won approximately 83,000 votes. Kang started the magazine ''Taiwan Political Forum'' (also known as the ''Taiwan Political Review'') in August 1975. After five issues, the government banned the publication. Kang launched another periodical in March 1978 called ''The Eighties''. Despite a moderate tone, it was also eventually shut down, returning as ''Asian Monthly''. In 1980, he declared his candidacy for a third legislative term, winning nearly 80,000 votes. Kang ran for another term in the
Legislative Yuan The Legislative Yuan () is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of China (Taiwan) located in Taipei. The Legislative Yuan is composed of 113 members, who are directly elected for four-year terms by people of the Taiwan Area through a ...
election of 1983, and due to the efforts of what became the New Tide faction, suffered a surprising defeat. Subsequently, he secured a visiting appointment at
Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
in the United States. Shortly after co-founding the
Democratic Progressive Party The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is a centre to centre-left Taiwanese nationalist political party in Taiwan. As the dominant party in the Pan-Green Coalition, one of the two main political camps in Taiwan, the DPP is currently the ...
, Kang contested the 1986 Legislative Yuan elections as a representative for Taipei and finished second in the total vote count for the district, serving until 1990. In November 1988, Kang received government permission to establish the ''Capital Morning News''. It began in May 1989 and ran until August 1990 when it was shuttered due to lack of funds. In October, he was named to the
National Unification Council The National Unification Council was a nonstatutory governmental agency of the Republic of China on Taiwan established on 7 October 1990. Now defunct, its formal aim was to promote the reintegration of mainland China into the Republic of Chin ...
, but missed the first meeting, as the
Democratic Progressive Party The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is a centre to centre-left Taiwanese nationalist political party in Taiwan. As the dominant party in the Pan-Green Coalition, one of the two main political camps in Taiwan, the DPP is currently the ...
had at first chosen to boycott the group over concerns about its name. Kang had been active in a preceding committee, the National Affairs Conference. After a stint in the
National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...
, he was appointed to the
Control Yuan The Control Yuan is the supervisory and auditory branch of the government of the Republic of China, both during its time in mainland China and Taiwan. Designed as a hybrid of auditor and ombudsman by Taiwanese law, the Control Yuan holds th ...
in 1993, and as a result, Kang's DPP membership was suspended. While a member of the Control Yuan, Kang played a lead role investigating the murder of and the related La Fayette-class frigate scandal. In 1998, Kang participated in the follow-up meetings taking place after the initial Wang–Koo summit in 1993. Throughout 2002, it was reported that Kang would assume a deputy ministerial position at the
Ministry of National Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divide ...
, and he eventually took office on 31 May. After two months with the MND, Kang's DPP membership was restored. In October, Kang visited the Pentagon in his official capacity, becoming the first Taiwanese official to be received in Washington D.C. since the termination of official relations in 1979. Kang was named the head of the
National Security Council A national security council (NSC) is usually an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues and advising chief executives on matters related to national security. An NSC is often headed by a n ...
in February 2003, and during his tenure adopted a direct management style designed to enhance transparency within the institution. In June, Kang tried to promote longtime aide Huang Tsai-tien to rear admiral. The proposal was blocked, as Huang did not fulfill the requirements for promotion. Soon after, media reports alleged that Kang's leadership caused many others at the agency to resign, a claim he rejected. In August, another of Kang's hires was forced to resign, as she had been linked to entrepreneurship opportunities in China. Shortly after leaving the National Security Council, Kang was named a senior adviser to President
Chen Shui-bian Chen Shui-bian ( zh, t=陳水扁; born 12 October 1950) is a Taiwanese former politician and lawyer who served as the fifth president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) from 2000 to 2008. Chen was the first president from the Democratic Progres ...
. By 2006, he had left that position. After leaving government service, Kang became the president of the Foundation for Asia-Pacific Development.


Political stances

Kang was described by ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' in 1978 as "the most successful and astute of the opposition," and is seen as a moderate member of the Democratic Progressive Party. He told the ''Times'' in 1988 that an independent Taiwan was an idea worthy of discussion. Kang met with Chinese politicians at the
Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 18 ...
in the United States later that year, and made his opposition to the "
one country, two systems "One country, two systems" is a constitutional principle of the People's Republic of China (PRC) describing the governance of the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau. Deng Xiaoping developed the one country, two systems ...
" formula known. He believes that improvement in Cross-Strait relations should not cost Taiwan its path to democratization. He refused to support the
three links The Three Links or Three Linkages () was a 1979 proposal from the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China (PRC) to open up postal, transportation (especially airline), and trade links between mainland China and Taiwan, with th ...
until Taiwan's political status was resolved. Kang was supportive of Fei Hsi-ping,
Lee Teng-hui Lee Teng-hui (; pinyin: ''Lǐ Dēnghuī''; 15 January 192330 July 2020) was a Taiwanese politician and agricultural scientist who served as the fourth president of the Republic of China, president of the Taiwan, Republic of China (Taiwan) unde ...
, and Liang Su-yung.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kang, Ning-hsiang 1938 births Living people Democratic Progressive Party Members of the Legislative Yuan Members of the 1st Legislative Yuan in Taiwan Taipei Members of the Legislative Yuan National Chung Hsing University alumni Senior advisors to President Chen Shui-bian Taiwanese democracy activists Taiwanese political party founders Taiwanese members of the Control Yuan Recipients of the Order of Brilliant Star Taipei City Councilors