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, where he served until 2000. Chiang was subsequently elected to consecutive terms on 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 4-year terms by people of the Taiwan Area through a parallel ...

from 2002 to 2008. During his first term as a legislator, Chiang was Vice President of the Legislative Yuan. He was Chairman of the Straits Exchange Foundation from 2008 to 2012.

Biography

Chiang received his Ph.D. 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 by ...

in 1971. He was Assistant Commercial Attaché at the ROC Embassy in Japan from 1967 to 1974, Commercial Attaché at the ROC Consulate General in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, 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#List of megacities, megacity, and is List of urban areas by p ...

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 count ...

from 1979 to 1981, Deputy Director-General of the

Board of Foreign Trade Board or Boards may refer to: Flat surface * Lumber, or other rigid material, milled or sawn flat ** Plank (wood) ** Cutting board ** Sounding board, of a musical instrument * Cardboard (paper product) * Paperboard * Fiberboard ** Hardboard, a ty ...

(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. In this capacity, he was the special envoy of

Lee Teng-hui Lee Teng-hui (; 15 January 192330 July 2020) was a Taiwanese statesman and economist who served as President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) under the 1947 Constitution and chairman of the Kuomintang (KMT) from 1988 to 2000. He was the fir ...

at the 1998 and 1999 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation 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 List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, sli ...

, 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 ...

Family

Chiang was born in Nantō District, Taichū Prefecture, Japanese Taiwan. 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 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

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 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 Chin ...

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 main ...

in 1949. The delegation paid homage to the 72 martyrs of the Tenth Revolution in Huanghuagang before travelling to the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum in

Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Map Romanization, alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu Provinces of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and 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 from 1 ...

'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 semi-official body responsible for negotiation on non-political matters with the

. 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 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