MA GOVERNMENT TAKES SHAPE: FIRST TRANCHE OF

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TAIPEI 000552 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR TW SUBJECT: MA GOVERNMENT TAKES SHAPE: FIRST TRANCHE OF CABINET AND PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTMENTS REF: TAIPEI 508 ¶1. (SBU) Premier-designate Liu Chao-hsuan (reftel) today, April 21, announced the first tranche of seventeen appointments to his new cabinet, which will take office on May 20 following the swearing-in of President-elect Ma Ying-jeou and Vice President-elect Vincent Siew. Ma personally announced his appointments for Presidential Office Secretary General and Deputy Secretary General on April 18, SIPDIS following his April 14 announcement of the appointment of P.K. Chiang to head the Strait Exchange Foundation (SEF). Para 2 provides information on the Presidential Office appointments and para 3 provides information on the first tranche of cabinet appointments. (Note: We will follow up with more detailed cables and analysis on some of the key figures, as well as the overall composition of the cabinet. End note.) Presidential Office -------------- ¶2. (SBU) New Presidential Office Appointments: -- Secretary General Chan Chun-po will head the presidential office after serving as Ma's presidential campaign director and chief of Ma's presidential transition team. Chan also directed Ma's successful 1998 and 2002 Taipei mayoral campaigns. Chan will likely remain a Vice Chairman on the KMT Central Standing Committee, a position which he has held since January 2007. Chan, 67 years old, was born in Changhua County. He received his master's degree in political science from Harvard in 1970, and was an IV grantee in 1987. Chan is married and his two sons both graduated from American universities. He has a fairly good command (S-4) of English. -- Deputy Secretary General Yeh Chin-chuan served as Taipei City Director of Public Health under Ma (1998-2000) and, after outstanding service during the SARS outbreak of 2003, returned to serve as Ma's deputy mayor (2004-2006). Yeh quit the deputy mayorship in an unsuccessful attempt to seek the KMT nomination in the 2006 Taipei mayoral race. He told the press on Saturday that he had declined Ma's original offer to head the Department of Health because he did not enjoy being in the limelight. Yeh, 58, is a high school classmate of Ma's. He has an M.D. from National Taiwan University and studied for his doctorate in public health at Harvard. He speaks English at the S-3 level. -- On April 14, Ma confirmed that he will appoint KMT Vice Chairman P.K. Chiang (Pin-kung) Chairman of the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF). Ma indicated that Chiang's extensive contacts with Chinese officials and Taiwan businesspeople in China made him the ideal candidate for the post. Chiang served two terms as legislator (2001-2008),was Chairman of the Council for Economic Planning and Development (1995-2000),and Economics Minister (1993-1995). Chiang, born in Nantou County in 1932, is 76 years old. He is married with three children, and speaks English and Japanese fluently (S-4 level). The Cabinet -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Cabinet Appointments: -- Vice Premier Paul Chiu (Cheng-hsiung) was former chairman of En Tie Commercial Bank (2003-2006) and Chairman of KMT Grand Cathay Securities (2000-2003). He also served as Finance Minister under President Lee Teng-hui (1996-2000). Chiu, a Fulbright alumnus and current member of theFulbright board in Taiwan, received his masters and doctorate in economics from Ohio State University (1971-1978). He is 66 years old, born in Hualien County. Chiu is married, has two sons, and speaks English fluently. -- EY Secretary General Steve Hsieh (Hsiang-chuan) is the former head of the economics and technology division of the KMT-sponsored thinktank, the National Policy Foundation. During the presidential campaign, Hsieh was an outspoken advocate of Ma's plans for economic recovery, especially the 12 proposed large-scale public investment projects. He TAIPEI 00000552 002 OF 003 earned an M.S. and Ph.D in Biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin and speaks English fluently (S-4 level). -- Foreign Minister Francisco Ou (Hung-lien) was Taiwan's ambassador to Guatemala (1990-1996, 2002-2008),Nicaragua (1984-1986),and Taiwan's representative to Argentina (1986-1990) and Spain (1992-2002). He also served as Vice Foreign Minister for Administration (1996-1999). Ou, an ethnic Hakka, was born in 1940 in Hualien County. Ou is married and speaks English fluently (S-4 level). -- Minister without Portfolio Tsai Hsun-hsiung, currently the president of the National Policy Foundation (2000-2008),was Director General of the Environmental Protection Administration (1996-2000) and Vice Chairman of the Council for Economic Planning and Development (1992-1996). He received his masters in urban planning from MIT and his doctorate from Princeton University. He is married and speaks English fluently. -- Minister without Portfolio Chu Yun-peng, currently a research fellow at the Sun Yat-sen Institute for Social Sciences (1996-2008) and a professor at National Central University (1999-2008),served on the Executive Yuan Fair Trade Commission (1992-1996). He received his doctorate in economics from the University of Maryland (1979-1982). -- Economics Minister Yin Chi-ming, currently a professor of economics at Chung Hua University (2005-2008),was Economics Vice Minister (1997-2005) and Director General of the Industrial Development Bureau (1994-1997). Yin was born in Tainan County in 1952. He is married with one daughter. He speaks English at the S-3 level. -- Interior Minister Liao Feng-te is currently KMT Vice Secretary General (2007-2008) and Chairman of the KMT SIPDIS Organizational and Development Committee (2004-2008). As Chairman of the Organizational and Development Committee, Liao orchestrated the KMT's 2007-2008 legislative campaign, which yielded a KMT three-fourths majority in the LY. Liao has been active in KMT politics since the early 1990's. He was born in Ilan County in 1951. -- Agriculture Council Chairperson Chen Wu-hsiung, currently a research fellow at the economics and technology division of the National Policy Foundation (2002-2008). Chen was Agriculture Council Vice Chairman (1999-2001),Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and Forestry for the Taiwan Provincial Government (1996),and held various planning and programming positions at the Council of Agriculture (1984-1996). He received his masters and doctorate from the University of Illinois (1970-1980). He was born in Taiwan in 1944, is married with two children, and speaks English fluently. -- Economic Planning and Development Council Chairperson Chen Tien-chih, currently professor of economics at National Taiwan University (2003-2008),has served as consultant, vice president, and president of the Chunghua Institution for Economic Research (CIER) (1995-2005). He received his doctorate in economics from the University of Pennsylvania. Chen is 55 years old, is married, and speaks English fluently. -- Transportation and Communications Minister Mao Chi-kuo is currently a chair professor at the Institute of Business and Management, National Chiaotung University (2003-2008). Mao served as Administrative Vice Minister at the Transportation and Communications Ministry (1994-2000) and as Director of the High Speed Railway Preparatory Office (1991-1993). He received his doctorate from MIT in 1982. He is married and speaks English fluently. -- Justice Minister Wang Ching-feng is a prominent attorney and human rights advocate (1996-2008). Wang was a member of the LY committee which investigated the March 19, 2004 shooting of President Chen and Vice President Liu (2004-2005). She is also the founder and chairperson of the Taiwan Women's Rescue Foundation (1999-2008),and a former member of the Control Yuan (1993-1996). Wang is not affiliated with any political party. She is 56 years old, married with one child, and speaks English. TAIPEI 00000552 003 OF 003 -- Director General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics Shih Su-mei, currently the Director of the Taipei City Government Office of Budget, Accounting, and Statistics (2006-2008),is 56 years old, married, and speaks English. -- Department of Health Minister Lin Fang-yue is currently Director of National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) (2004-2008). Lin also served as NTUH Deputy Director (1999-2004),and headed its cardiovascular surgery and emergency medicine departments (1996-2000). He is married and speaks English. -- Environmental Protection Agency Director-General Shen Shih-hung is currently Director of the Taipei City Government Environmental Protection Bureau (2006-2008). Shen has been active in environmental protection for over twenty years. He is 59 years old, married, and speaks English. -- Council of Labor Affairs Chairperson Wang Ju-hsuan is an attorney and human rights advocate (1990-2008). She is also the Chairperson of the Taipei Bar Association ad hoc committee on women's rights (2002-2008). She is 47 years old, married, and speaks English. -- Aboriginal Affairs Commission Chairperson Chang Jen-hsiang is currently KMT Vice Chairperson (2006-2008) and previously served four terms in the LY (1995-2007). She is 55 years old, married, and speaks English. -- Youth Affairs Council Chairperson Wang Yu-ting served two terms in the LY (1998-2008). She is 35 years old, unmarried, and speaks English. YOUNG