PRESIDENT MA YING-JEOU'S NEW CABINET: DEMOGRAPHICS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TAIPEI 000657 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV TW SUBJECT: PRESIDENT MA YING-JEOU'S NEW CABINET: DEMOGRAPHICS ¶1. (SBU) Summary: This cable describes the demographic profile of President-elect Ma Ying-jeou's cabinet (not including the National Security Council and Presidential Office appointments),with particular attention to the age, gender, birthplace, education, government experience, political connections, and U.S. connections of the thirty-six people who comprise Ma's corps of senior policymakers. ¶2. (SBU) The average age of the cabinet members is 57; one quarter of the new cabinet posts are held by women. Twenty-four members of what has been called the "Ph.D. Cabinet" hold doctoral degrees, and six more hold masters degrees. Most come from academia or served in earlier KMT governments: eighteen are academics (of whom six are currently serving as university presidents),six served with Ma under President Lee Teng-hui, and four worked for him when he was Taipei Mayor. In a departure from previous KMT administrations, "mainlanders" born outside Taiwan make up less than a third of the cabinet, and "Taiwanese" are in charge of cross-Strait relations. This is perhaps the most "American" cabinet in Taiwan's history, with thirteen of its members educated in the U.S. Ma and Premier-designate Liu Chao-hsuan selected "seasoned professionals" to ensure competency and stability at the beginning of the new administration. End Summary. Age and Gender -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Most of the new cabinet members are in their mid-fifties to early sixties, with 67 year-old Defense Minister Chen Chao-min being the oldest, and 35 year-old National Youth Commission Chairperson Wang Li-ting the youngest. The average age is 57, which has prompted some Taiwan media commentators to argue the cabinet is "too old" to come up with new ideas. Taoyuan Magistrate and Ma confidant Eric Chu (Li-lun) told the Director last month that Ma and Premier-designate Liu would choose "seasoned professionals" to staff important cabinet posts in order to ensure competence and stability at the outset of the new administration. Ten of the 36 newly-filled positions are held by women, fulfilling Ma's pledge that women would occupy at least a quarter of the seats in the new cabinet. Education -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Twenty-four members of the new cabinet hold doctoral and six masters degrees. Of the remaining six, four hold bachelors degrees and two graduated from military academies. Six are currently university presidents, and twelve more are attached to universities or research organizations. Taiwan pundits have dubbed this the "ivory tower" cabinet and the "Ph.D. cabinet," questioning whether academics, even such prominent ones, could have the practical experience or government expertise necessary to deal effectively with Taiwan's real-world problems. KMT sources close to Ma earlier told AIT that Ma would include a high number of academics in his administration because he viewed them as less susceptible to corruption than long-time party officials. "Mainlanders" vs. "Taiwanese" -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Twenty-five members of the new cabinet, a strong majority, are "ethnic Taiwanese" born in Taiwan. Particularly sensitive to public fears that his administration might "sell out" Taiwan to China, Ma placed "Taiwanese" in charge of the entities responsible for dealing with the PRC )- the Straits Exchange Foundation (KMT Vice Chairman P.K. Chiang) and the Mainland Affairs Council (former TSU legislator Lai Hsin-yuan). Only nine members of the new cabinet are "mainlanders" born in China, and all of them, including Premier-designate Liu Chao-hsuan, Finance Minister Lee Shu-te, and Transportation and Communications Minister Mao Chih-kuo, have been assigned domestic policy-related duties mostly unrelated to cross-Strait affairs. Government Experience and Political Connections -------------- -- TAIPEI 00000657 002 OF 002 ¶6. (SBU) Ma and Siew served together under President Lee Teng-hui -- Ma as Justice Minister and Siew as Minister of Economic Affairs. This may explain in part why six members of the new cabinet were also former members of the Lee administration, including Vice Premier-designate Paul Chiu (Cheng-hsiung),Foreign Minister-designate Francisco Ou (Hung-lien),and Minister-designate of Economic Affairs Yin Chi-ming. Ma also drew heavily from KMT party ranks: five cabinet members are full-time party officials, while another is currently President of the KMT-sponsored National Policy Foundation thinktank. Former members of Ma's Taipei City government also figure prominently in the new cabinet: the incoming Finance Minister, the Director General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics, the Environmental Protection Agency Director, and one Minister without Portfolio all served Ma during his tenure as Taipei Mayor. U.S. Connections -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Thirteen members of the new cabinet received undergraduate or graduate degrees from U.S. universities. The Presidential Office Secretary-General and Deputy Secretary-General and two of the Deputy Secretaries-General of the National Security Council were also U.S.-educated. Almost all of Ma's cabinet speak some English, and sixteen of them speak it fluently. YOUNG