Sun, Jul 07, 2002 page3

• The 'Ilan Tank' trundles into the future

  As guardians of the DPP's core philosophy, the `Ilan Gang' has upheld tradition and enforced strict discipline to keep its members on the path set by the pioneers of Taiwan's democracy movement

  • By Yang Shu-mei
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  Chen Kuo Chin-tsai (郭進財) was taking over the chairmanship of the state-run Chinese Petroleum Corp (中油), the so-called "Ilan Gang" (宜蘭幫), once again came under the spotlight when Premier Yu Shyi-kun proudly referred to Kuo by saying: "He's also from Ilan [which is my hometown]."

  Throughout the DPP's rise from opposition party to ruling party, the Ilan Gang has been like the German soccer team, one of Europe's soccer powerhouses that has been dubbed the "German tank."

  

  Three top members of the `Ilan Gang' are from left to right Premier Yu Shyi-kun, Minister of Justice Chen Ding-nan and Council of Labor Affairs Chairwoman Chen Chu.

  PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES

  With its long-standing democratic tradition and by upholding the spirit of solidarity and flexible strategies, the "Ilan tank" has constantly been able to subdue enemies and take up important posts on its way from membership in local governments to ruling the central government.

  

  Lin I-hsiung

  PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES

  The foundation of the Ilan tank began with the pioneers of the tangwai (黨外, those outside the KMT) democracy movement -- Chiang Wei-shui (蔣渭水) and Kuo Yu-hsin (郭雨新).

  The highly respected and well-known "three grandpas and one grandma" (三公一婆) of the Ilan Gang -- former DPP chairman Lin I-hsiung (林義雄), Premier Yu, Minister of Justice Chen Ding-nan (陳定南) and Council of Labor Affairs Chairwoman Chen Chu (陳菊) -- were either directly or indirectly inspired by Chiang and Kuo before they became the elite vanguard of the Ilan tank.

  

  Chen Ding-nan

  PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES

  Among the four, Lin made a great contribution to Taiwan's first transfer of political power by helping Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) win the presidency. But he then chose to exit the political stage, having no desire to grab power. Even as he remains outside the political sphere, many dare not think lightly of the power he can exert when he deems it necessary.

  

  Chen Chu

  PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES

  Meanwhile, the other three "gang leaders" are holding important posts in the central government.

  These four people have walked their own different paths after the DPP took the nation's helm. Their relationships with each other, which seem to be competitive and cooperative at the same time, date back to the time they shared in Ilan.

  

  Lin Sheng-fong

  PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES

  Roots of a movement

  At the age of 18, Yu joined the Youth Party (青年黨), which was established by Kuo. Chen Chu, two years Yu's junior, was Kuo's secretary around that time. Yu and Chen thus learned political concepts from Kuo in those days.

  After working under Kuo for a period of time, Yu decided to run in the Taiwan Provincial Assembly elections. However, born into a poor family, Yu was only a graduate from an evening college course. He simply could not compete with another candidate, Lin I-hsiung, who was a law graduate from the prominent National Taiwan University, served as Kuo's legal adviser, and helped Kuo deal with lawsuits in 1975 after he lost in the legislative elections due to vote-rigging.

  With all his credentials inferior to Lin's, Yu accepted the advice of tangwai elder Huang Hsin-chieh (黃信介) and withdrew from the candidacy to serve as secretary general of Lin's campaign headquarters and stump for him.

  During the 1981 elections for county commissioners and Taiwan Provincial Assembly deputies, the DPP planned to field Yu as their Ilan candidate for the position of Provincial Assembly deputy. At the same time, the political novice -- Chen Ding-nan -- was to run in the Ilan County commissioner race.

  Initially, Chen was unwilling to accept the arrangement because he felt that he was being sacrificed as a "suicide candidate" in an area where the KMT had a strong power base. Unexpectedly, he was elected and went on to perform brilliantly during his term. Therefore, Chen at one point surpassed Yu in terms of fame and publicity although he entered politics later than Yu. After Chen, Yu also took part in the commissioner race and was elected as Ilan County chief.

  The three grandfathers and one grandmother's support for each other during the past tangwai movements have won the Ilan Gang a place on the political stage. Thanks to their guidance, the Ilan tank has gradually cultivated an elite in government positions.

  Among the Ilan Gang members, Yu has the most abundant administrative resources at his disposal and his political track record is highlighted by his experience as a local government chief and as a premier. For this reason, the "Yu clan" (游家班) has flourished most among the members of the Ilan Gang.

  In central government agencies, Minister Without Portfolio Chen Chi-nan (陳其南), Lin Sheng-feng (林盛豐) and Chairman of the National Council for Physical Fitness and Sports (體委會) Lin Te-fu (林德福) all hail from the Yu clan.

  During his term as deputy chairman of the Council for Cultural Affairs (文建會), Chen Chi-nan put all his effort into "holistic community building" (社區總體營造) and thus interacted well with Yu, who also attached great importance to the concept during his term as commissioner. This has paved the way for their cooperation today.

  Lin Sheng-feng, head of the Department of Architecture at Tamkang University, assisted then Ilan County Commissioner Yu to construct the renowned Ilan Tungshan River Park (冬山河親水公園) and the Luotung Sports Park (羅東運動公園) in his capacity as chief advisor to the Ilan County government. Lin also participated in planning the impressive Children's Folklore and Folk Game Festival (童玩節) in Ilan. He is also the mastermind behind the "Ilan experience" that Yu has been very proud of. No wonder that, after he climbed higher, Yu did not forget to promote Lin's talent.

  Since Chen Chi-nan and Lin Sheng-feng followed Yu into the Cabinet, Yu has entrusted the two with many significant and complex state affairs that require long-term planning.

  Recently, when Yu flew to Orchid Island (蘭嶼) to deal with the nuclear-waste dispute, Chen was in the entourage to help handle the thorny problem. Meanwhile, Lin took over as deputy director of the 921 Earthquake Post-Disaster Recovery Commission (九二一震災災後重建委員會), to take charge of this immensely difficult task.

  Chen and Lin also jointly planned Premier Yu's prime policy -- the "Challenging 2008" program, a six-year plan to build Taiwan into a regional economic and technological powerhouse.

  Another member of the Yu clan who is currently serving in the central government's agencies is Lin Te-fu, chairman of the National Council for Physical Fitness and Sports. With a masters degree in public administration from National Chengchi University, Lin once quit his job as a civil servant in Ilan to work as a pig farmer. His cooperative relationship with Yu started when Yu, the county commissioner of Ilan at that time, invited him to serve as director of Ilan's cultural center.

  Lin's successes in Ilan include the "Joy of Ilan" Festival (歡樂宜蘭年), the International Children's Folklore and Folk Game Festival (國際童玩藝術節), and various community fairs. Lin's performance made Yu take notice and he was later brought into the Cabinet-level National Council for Physical Fitness and Sports.

  What few people have noticed, is that the usually low-key council actually has the greatest concentration of the Yu clan's members. Apart from Council Chairman Lin Te-fu, Deputy Chairman Wu Shou-chian (吳壽遷) is also from Ilan.

  During Yu's tenure as county commissioner, Wu was in charge of organizing the Taiwan Regional Games in Ilan. Council advisor Lin Ta-yi (林大溢) is also one of Yu's men. He was once chief executive of the Ilan Association for the Promotion of Industries (宜蘭工業策進會) and he was an important advisor on attracting business investment when Yu was county commissioner.

  Yu has installed his clan members in the central government agencies. Chuang Ho-hsiung (莊和雄), who served as education bureau chief under Yu's Ilan County government, has been appointed to the Executive Yuan's Seventh Division, which controls "general affairs" (which include money matters). One can see that Yu has installed his clan members in the most inconspicuous positions, but these are people who can best follow the essence of Yu's ideas and are in a position to implement them.

  The power of the Yu clan, as part of the Ilan Gang, is also increasing at the local level of government. Lin Hsi-yao (林錫耀), who served as environmental bureau chief under Yu's Ilan County government, is now deputy commissioner of Taipei County under Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌). Yu also unilaterally promoted Su Li-chiung (蘇麗瓊), who served as civil affairs bureau chief under him in Ilan. Yu recommended her to Kaohsiung City Mayor Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), who appointed her as social affairs bureau chief to replace the outgoing Chen Chu.

  Because of his Ilan-based experience under Yu, Ilan's former construction bureau chief, Lee Wen-liang (李文良), was also recruited by Hsieh to oversee Kaohsiung City's development bureau, plan Kaohsiung's transformation projects and organize major international events.

  A very interesting development is that Chiu Shu-ti (邱淑題), who served as the director of Ilan's health office under Yu, was lured away by Taipei City's KMT mayor, Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), to serve as director of the city's health bureau.

  Yu's leadership created the potential power of the Yu clan, but the fearsomeness of the "Ilan tank" does not depend entirely on this group.

  Apart from Chen Ding-nan and Yu, the current county commissioner of Ilan, Liu Shou-cheng (劉守成), also continues to defend the government (in effect, the DPP's turf). His outstanding performance is opening the way for him to move his battleground to the central government.

  In the central-level legislative branch, there is Chang Chuan-tien (張川田), who is an Ilan elder, as well as first-term lawmaker Chen Chin-te (陳金德), also known as the "oldest grandson of the tangwai movement." At the level of local councils, Lee Kun-tse (李昆澤), who is set to be nominated by the DPP for Kaohsiung City councilor, is also a warrior from the Ilan legion.

  The "Ilan tank" is launching an all-out offensive at both the central and local levels of government. Even in the military, Ilan people are rising with leaps and bounds.

  The Ilan background of Pan Ai-chu (潘愛珠), who served as political warfare chief at the Military Intelligence Bureau, elevated her to the glory of becoming the military's first female major general in 34 years. Lieutenant general Chiu Chung-nan (邱忠男), who interacted very well with commissioner Yu while in charge of Command 202 of the military police, was also promoted to deputy commander of the Special Operations Center under the National Security Bureau. Yang Te-chih (楊德智), an Ilan native and current chairman of the Veterans Affairs Commission, is widely rumored within the military to be the hot candidate for the next defense minister.

  Apart from their abundant talent, the "Ilan tank" is made even stronger by their ability to cultivate alliances.

  In the legislature's New Tide faction -- which has the DPP's best warriors -- Chen Chu, Liu Shou-cheng, Lin Hsi-yao, Chen Chin-te and Li Kun-tse all belong to the "Ilan Gang." This layer of connections have glued the New Tide faction and the "Ilan Gang" together. When Lin I-hsiung and Yu were in charge of the DPP's party headquarters, they depended on the New Tide faction to maintain half of their turf. Meanwhile, Liu Shih-fang (劉世芳), one of the key figures groomed by the New Tide faction, became the Cabinet's secretary general under Yu, proving that the "Ilan Gang" and the New Tide faction do help each other.

  Special superior-subordinate relationships and blood relations are also one secret behind the Ilan Gang's extraordinary solidarity.

  For example, lawmaker Chen Chin-te served as Yu's personal secretary at one point. Lee Kun-tse once served as an assistant to Chen Ding-nan. Such close relationships and the practice of one generation promoting the next has contributed to their political cooperation.

  As for blood relations within the Ilan Gang: Yu's wife, Yang Pao-yu (楊寶玉), is a distant relative of Lin I-hsiung and calls him her "brother." The late National Assembly deputy Lee Mao-chuan (李茂全), one of Yu's old friends on the political path, married Chen Mei-yu (陳美玉), a cousin of Chen Chu. Lee Kun-tse, the Kaohsiung City councilor nominee, is Chen Chu's nephew.

  Connections, connections

  Hsia Tsu-yan (夏梓晏), who once served as Lin I-hsiung's secretary at his DPP Chairman's Office and who is currently deputy director of the DPP's secretariat, is a half-sister of Yu, whose mother later married Hsia's father.

  The criss-crossed web of family relations has also strengthened the resilience of relationships within the Ilan Gang.

  Today, under Yu's leadership, the Ilan tank is riding on the past performances of pioneers such as Lin I-hsiung, Chen Ding-nan, Chen Chu and Yu himself, carrying along the ethics and coalescence built through patronage and family relations. In addition, there is strong support from allies, as well as ongoing recruitment and evaluation of new members by the top leaders.

  The Ilan tank, like the soccer world's "German tank," upholds tradition and enforces strict discipline. Its power is likely to rise even further.

  This article first appeared in the Journalist magazine.

  Translated by Francis Huang and Jackie Lin.
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