- Chen Chu
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Chen Chu
陳菊
Chen Chu in December 2008 1st Mayor of Kaohsiung Incumbent Assumed office
25 December 2010Preceded by Chen Chu as Mayor of Kaohsiung 27th Mayor of Kaohsiung In office
25 December 2006 – 25 December 2010Preceded by Yeh Chu-lan Succeeded by Chen Chu as Mayor of Kaohsiung (Greater Kaohsiung) Personal details Born 10 June 1950
Yilan County, TaiwanPolitical party Democratic Progressive Party Alma mater Shih Hsin University
National Sun Yat-sen UniversityProfession Politician Chen Chu (traditional Chinese: 陳菊; simplified Chinese: 陈菊; pinyin: Chén Jú; Wade–Giles: Ch'én Chǘ; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Tân Kiok; born 10 June 1950 in Yilan County, Taiwan) is a Taiwanese politician who is the current mayor of Kaohsiung. She was one of the "Kaohsiung Eight," prominent dissidents arrested after the Kaohsiung Incident in 1979. She spent six years in jail during the martial law period in Taiwan.
Chen, who holds a master's degree from National Sun Yat-sen University, held senior appointed posts in Taipei City and Kaohsiung City governments between 1995 and 2000. She then served as minister of the Council of Labor Affairs between 2000 and 2005. In 2006, Chen Chu won the Kaohsiung mayoral elections and became the city's first elected female mayor. She was re-elected in 2010 with 52% of the vote in a three-way race.
On 30 August 2009, The 14th Dalai Lama accepted an invitation from Chen Chu to visit Taiwan.[1]
Chen is single, and has never married.
Contents
Kaohsiung mayoralty
Chen narrowly won the 2006 Kaohsiung mayoral elections over Kuomintang (KMT) candidate Huang Jun-ying (黃俊英) by just 1,120 votes.[2] Huang filed two lawsuits against Chen's camp, asking the court to annul Chen's victory. He argued that the airing of a video on the eve of the election resulted in his loss. The Kaohsiung District Court ruled in favor of Huang Jun-ying in one of the cases, thereby nullifying the elections.[3]
Soon after hearing the news, Chen expressed that she would appeal the case. She said that if she accepted the ruling, it would be political suicide. While her DPP colleague and legislator Kuan Bi-ling advised Chen to give up the appeal and allow a by-election,[3] Chen nonetheless appealed the case. Some wondered if Kuan, who lost to Chen in the primaries, made the remark out of personal interest.[3]
The High Court overturned the earlier decision and validated Chen's election victory on 17 November 2007.[4][5] In December 2007, after her mayoralty was proven indisputable, she announced that her new goal is to focus on improving the city's transportation, public construction, and environmental protection.[6]
In April 2009, mayor Chen promised to improve the water quality of Chienchen River, a river that the locals called "Heilungchiang" (Chinese: 黑龍江; lit. "Black dragon river"). She said that NT$120 million (approximately US$3.6 million) will be spent to complete the task. She vowed to make Kaohsiung a city that is not just notable for the cleanliness of its Love River.[7]
World Games 2009
Kaohsiung was the host city of World Games 2009. Chen Chu visited the People's Republic of China (commonly known as "China") to promote the Games. During a meeting with Beijing mayor Guo Jinlong, Chen addressed President Ma Ying-jeou with his formal title, which garnered much support from the DPP and the Kaohsiung City legislature.[8] Chen's trip to China was criticized by several localization activist groups including the Taiwan Solidarity Union. However, Chen said that the trip was intended to benefit Kaohsiung.[9] During her trip, she met with not only the mayor of Beijing, but also Shanghai mayor Han Zheng and Chinese Olympic Committee chairman Liu Pong.
The main venue for the Games, the World Games Stadium, was designed by Japanese architect Toyo Ito.[10] The groundbreaking and completion of the stadium both occurred during Chen's term as mayor.
The closing ceremony was held at the sold-out World Games Stadium, where International World Games Association President Ron Froehlich called it a "fantastic success" and declared it the "best ever."[11] Kaohsiung's tourism bureau announced that the Games generated almost US$61 million in revenue for the city. The city's department stores reported a 15 percent growth in sales. Mayor Chen said that Kaohsiung would no longer be known only as the second largest city in Taiwan, but also as the city that hosted the best World Games ever.[12]
Typhoon Fanapi
Chen Chu was criticized for napping in her residence while parts of Kaohsiung flooded when Typhoon Fanapi ripped through Taiwan on 19 September 2010.
Chen tearfully admitted to napping and to feeling guilty for taking a rest. She also stressed that she returned home to change her wet clothes and was also keeping a close eye on the storm. Critics called for Chen to resign from her post, and compared Chen's napping to former Premier Liu Chao-Shiuan's getting a haircut and former Executive Yuan Secretary-General Hsieh Hsiang-chuan's attending a Father's Day dinner during August 2009's Typhoon Morakot.[13][14]
Chen Chu and the City Government were sued by Benhe borough (本和里) chief Lin Chi-mei (林紀美), a fellow DPP member, in the aftermath of the flooding, alleging that the city government did not maintain proper facilities that might have prevented flooding.[15][16]
References
- ^ 達賴搭機來台 表明純祈福消災 – 中央社
- ^ Bradsher, Keith (2006-12-09). "Taiwan Leader's Party Ekes Out Win". New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D03EEDC1431F93AA35751C1A9609C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=1. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
- ^ a b c "Analysis: Kaohsiung mayorship annulment could benefit DPP". The Taipei Times. 2007-06-18. http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2007/06/18/2003365753. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ^ "Chen Chu urges KMT to accept ruling". The Taipei Times. 2007-11-08. http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2007/11/18/2003388358/wiki. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ^ "DPP mayor stays on top as court overturns ruling". The Standard (Hong Kong). 2007-11-17. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?we_cat=3&art_id=57051&sid=16345355&con_type=1&d_str=20071117&fc=10. Retrieved 2007-11-17.
- ^ 侯承旭 (2007-12-25). "陳菊就職一週年 宣示施政三方向" (in traditional Chinese). Liberty Times (Taiwan (ROC)). http://libertytimes.com/2007/new/dec/25/today-south7.htm. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ^ "前鎮河整容 市長拍胸脯" (in traditional Chinese). Liberty Times (Taiwan (ROC)). 2009-04-07. http://www.libertytimes.com.tw/2009/new/apr/7/today-south16.htm. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ^ "陳菊赴中發聲 民進黨肯定 台聯批自爽" (in traditional Chinese). Liberty Times (Taiwan (ROC)). 2009-05-23. http://www.libertytimes.com.tw/2009/new/may/23/today-p2.htm. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ^ "陳菊：赴中為高雄利益" (in traditional Chinese). Liberty Times (Taiwan (ROC)). 2009-05-23. http://www.libertytimes.com.tw/2009/new/may/23/today-p2-4.htm. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ^ Ouroussoff, Nicolai (2009-07-16). "Stadium Where Worlds Collide, Humanely". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/16/arts/design/16stadium.html?_r=1. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ^ "Sport beats out politics". Straits Times (Singapore). 2009-07-30. http://blogs.straitstimes.com/2009/7/29/sport-beats-out-politics. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ^ "Kaohsiung officials bask in Games’ glory, revenues". The Taipei Times. 2009-07-30. http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2009/07/30/2003449929. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ^ "Chen Chu apologizes for absence". The Taipei Times. 15 September 2011. http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/09/30/2003484166. Retrieved 22 September 2011.
- ^ "Cna English News". Focustaiwan.tw. 29 September 2010. http://focustaiwan.tw/ShowNews/WebNews_Detail.aspx?ID=201009290022&Type=aIPL. Retrieved 22 September 2011.
- ^ "Borough chief sues Chen Chu over flooding". The Taipei Times. 15 September 2011. http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/09/28/2003483977. Retrieved 22 September 2011.
- ^ "Cna English News". Focustaiwan.tw. 27 September 2010. http://focustaiwan.tw/ShowNews/WebNews_Detail.aspx?ID=201009270034&Type=aSOC. Retrieved 22 September 2011.
Government offices Preceded by
Yeh Chu-lanMayor of Kaohsiung
2006–2010Succeeded by
Chen ChuPreceded by
Chen ChuMayor of Kaohsiung
(Greater Kaohsiung)
2010–Incumbent {{Navbox |name = Kaohsiung mayors |title = Mayors of Kaohsiung |image =
Special municipalities List of mayors of Kaohsiung－Chen Chu（
） · Mayor of New Taipei－Eric Chu（
） · Mayor of Taichung－Jason Hu（） ·
List of mayors of Tainan－William Lai（） · List of mayors of Taipei－Hau Lung-pin（）Cities List of mayors of Chiayi－Huang Ming-hui（） · List of mayors of Hsinchu－Hsu Ming-Tzai（） · Mayor of Keelung－Chang Tong-rong（）Counties List of county governors of Changhua－Cho Po-yuan（） · List of county governors of Chiayi－Helen Chang（） ·
List of county governors of Hsinchu－Chiu Ching-chun（） · List of county governors of Hualien－Fu Kun-chi（
） ·
List of county governors of Kinmen－Li Wo-shi（） · List of county governors of Lienchiang－Yang Suisheng （） ·
List of county governors of Miaoli－Liu Cheng-hung（） · List of county governors of Nantou－Lee Chao-ching（） ·
List of county governors of Penghu－Wang Chien-fa（） · List of county governors of Pingtung－Tsao Chi-hung（） ·
List of county governors of Taitung－Justin Huang（） · List of county governors of Yilan－Lin Tsung-hsien（） ·
List of county governors of Yunlin－Su Chih-fen（）Categories:- 1950 births
- Living people
- Democratic Progressive Party (Taiwan) politicians
- Mayors of Kaohsiung
- National Sun Yat-sen University alumni
- Taiwan independence activists
- Taiwanese prisoners and detainees
- Politicians of the Republic of China on Taiwan from Yilan County
- Prisoners and detainees of Taiwan
- Taiwanese women in politics
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