Newsmaker-1: First daughter fights the limelight

At President Chen's inauguration ceremony on May 20 last year, Chen Hsing-yu was sitting next to New Party legislator Elmer Feng (馮滬祥), who 17 years previously filed a charge of libel against Chen Shui-bian, when the latter was editor in chief of a "tangwai" (黨外, non-KMT) magazine. At the time, Chen lost the election for Tainan County commissioner before serving eight months in prison after being convicted of Feng's libel charges. More horrifically, Wu Shu-chen was crippled when a truck was driven over her legs in a politically-motivated attempt to kill her husband.

But the Chens' severe hardships did not cost Chen Hsing-yu her good manners. She conversed with Feng in a polite and dignified manner during the event.

Chen's former schoolmates, interviewed by the media, say that Chen is "very accessible and polite," though she has the "utmost distaste" for politics and the media.

In the eyes of one of the president's long-time security guards, Chen Hsing-yu's behavior actually reflects the situation in the first family, in which he says"women are in charge" (女人當家).

Daughter like mother

"Hsing-yu resembles her mother not only in appearance, but also in temperament. They are straightforward people without affectation," said the guard.

When A-bian was still a legislator and Wu Shu-chen was in low spirits, he would immediately rush home to cheer her up. The philosophy that the "wife comes first" stands in stark contrast to the male chauvinism which prevails in conventional Taiwanese society.

"Chen Hsing-yu shows her emotions forthrightly in front of the cameras, while her younger brother, Chen Chih-jung (陳致中), always keeps a low profile and remains quiet," says the guard. "This is also how Wu and Chen interact with each other at home."

While many press commentaries have sympathized with Chen Hsing-yu for becoming a victim of the more unsavory aspects of media competition, they have also called on Chen to toughen her "fighting spirit" when faced with pressure, and to acquit herself better in the role of "first daughter."

"Members of the first family cannot avoid media coverage. Chen Hsing-yu should seek a better understanding of public relations and face the media squarely instead of seeking to avoid them. The media are after her only out of curiosity and not malice," says Hu Yu-wei (胡幼偉), a professor at the Graduate Institute of Mass Communications at National Taiwan Normal University.

"Especially when Chen Shui-bian himself is a politician who is a master at using the media to gain publicity for himself, the first lady and Chen Hsing-yu should also learn how to use their influence better," said Hu. "The first daughter's wedding will not be the end of the story, but the start of a new chapter. The media will be waiting to see how the couple interact in their married life. This will probably be an unavoidable nightmare for Chen."