Faina Chiang Fang-liang (蔣方良), widow of Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) and first lady of the Republic of China on Taiwan from 1978 to 1988, died yesterday at 12:40pm.
She died of respiratory failure brought on by lung cancer at age 88. But for her title of first lady, most in Taiwan know little of her. Unlike her predecessor, Soong Mayling (蔣宋美齡), who glittered both on the domestic and the international stage, Chiang Fang-liang was always a first lady in the shadows.
PHOTO: AP/CNA
Born Faina Epatcheva Vahaleva in Sverdlovsk, Siberia (now Ekateringburg, Russia), Vahaleva was orphaned at a young age and raised by her older sister Anna. An outspoken member of the Communist Youth League, Vahaleva met Chiang Ching-kuo at the age of 16 at the Ural Heavy Machinery Plant in Siberia, where Chiang was working in exile after his father, Chiang Kai-shek (
Vahaleva married Chiang Ching-kuo two years after they met, on March 15, 1935. Their first son, Hsiao-wen (孝文) was born in December 1935. The couple had two more sons, Hsiao-wu (孝武) and Hsiao-yung (孝勇) and a daughter (孝章).
Not long after the couple's marriage, Chiang Ching-kuo's reserve communist party member status was cancelled and he was not allowed to work. Vahaleva became the sole bread-winner for the family of three.
In early 1937, relations between China and the USSR eased. Stalin dramatically allowed Chiang to return to China. Perhaps Vahaleva had thought little of the different language, culture and traditions in China that would no doubt be a great barrier to her, or perhaps her love for her husband gave her all the courage needed. In any case, the Russian bride followed her husband to China.
Chiang Kai-shek was reportedly at first dismayed to have a Communist Russian daughter-in-law. But after the two met, Vahaleva -- who has been described as possessing the virtues of a traditional Chinese woman to a greater degree than a Chinese woman -- soon won the approval of her father-in-law and was given the name Fang-liang.
Chiang Fang-liang stayed behind to live with Chiang Ching-kuo's mother, Chiang Kai-shek's first wife, Mao Fu-mei (
Perhaps it was because of self-consciousness regarding her Mandarin -- with her Russian accent and Ningbo dialect -- that when Chiang Ching-kuo later became president, Fang-liang was often anxious about appearing in public.
If the traditional role of First lady was to be the silent shadow behind the president, Fang-liang filled it perfectly. Throughout her husband's political career, she stayed out of the public spotlight.
Little was ever known of her, except for her modest and simple lifestyle. She even exhibited the habits of a peasant housewife. She was used to doing all the household chores herself instead of employing servants. She would ask for her husband's approval for everything. Private household expenses, such as water and electricity bills, as well as salaries for servants, were all paid directly by Fang-liang from Chiang Ching-kuo's paycheck, instead of being deducted as public expenses.
Once a subordinate suggested to her, "everyone else deducts these as public expenses, why don't you let me handle them?"
Fang-liang replied that she had to ask her husband first, and called back a few days later saying, "No. He said no. We have to pay these ourselves."
Fang-liang mastered English after coming to Taiwan, and her fluency enabled her to access world news and events through English publications -- which probably limited her knowledge of her husband's affair with Chang Ya-ruo (
After Chiang Ching-kuo died, Fang-liang reportedly asked her second son Hsiao-wu, "I only have three sons, why are there reports saying I have five?"
Hsiao-wu, who had publicly reconciled with his half-brother Chang Hsiao-yan (章孝嚴/John Chang) chose to respond with silence.
The affair Chiang Ching-kuo had with Chang Ya-ruo occurred around 1940, and she bore him two sons: Hsiao-yan and Hsiao-tzu (孝慈).
No one, not even Hsiao-wu, knew if Fang-liang was aware of her husband's past romance with Chang Ya-ruo, but no one wanted to destroy the image of Chiang Ching-kuo in Fang-liang's heart.
Her old age was beset by ill-health, including heart disease, diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and the tragic loss of first her husband, then her sons. Chiang Ching-kuo passed away in 1988. Of her three sons, Hsiao-wen died in in 1989, Hsiao-wu in 1991 and Hsiao-yung in 1996.
Her health further deteriorated four years ago with the discovery of a tumor in the upper part of her left lung. When she underwent an X-ray examination on Dec. 6, fluid was discovered in her left lung. After being plagued by ill-health for over 10 years, Chiang Fang-liang's heart finally ceased beating at 12:10pm yesterday at Taipei Veterans General Hospital.
Few first ladies in history stand out as being influential. Soong Mayling of the ROC, the US' Hilary Clinton and Eva Peron of Argentina are perhaps exceptions, but unlike them, Chiang Fang-liang endured a life away from her home country, and coped with being placed in the awkward position of being the first lady of an anti-communist nation when her own country was the proselytizer of world communism. And she lived out her final years alone, with her remaining daughter living in the US and most of her friends having passed away.
Chiang Fang-liang lived her life with the weighty crown of first lady. While she never enjoyed the glamour associated with the title, she will be remembered for her stoicism.
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) was sentenced to six months in prison, commutable to a fine, by the New Taipei District Court today for contravening the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法) in a case linked to an alleged draft-dodging scheme. Wang allegedly paid NT$3.6 million (US$114,380) to an illegal group to help him evade mandatory military service through falsified medical documents, prosecutors said. He transferred the funds to Chen Chih-ming (陳志明), the alleged mastermind of a draft-evasion ring, although he lost contact with him as he was already in detention on fraud charges, they said. Chen is accused of helping a
SECURITY: Starlink owner Elon Musk has taken pro-Beijing positions, and allowing pro-China companies to control Taiwan’s critical infrastructure is risky, a legislator said Starlink was reluctant to offer services in Taiwan because of the nation’s extremely high penetration rates in 4G and 5G services, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said yesterday. The ministry made the comments at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, which reviewed amendments to Article 36 of the Telecommunications Management Act (電信管理法). Article 36 bans foreigners from holding more than 49 percent of shares in public telecommunications networks, while shares foreigners directly and indirectly hold are also capped at 60 percent of the total, unless specified otherwise by law. The amendments, sponsored by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ko
UNREASONABLE SURVEILLANCE: A camera targeted on an road by a neighbor captured a man’s habitual unsignaled turn into home, netting him dozens of tickets The Taichung High Administrative Court has canceled all 45 tickets given to a man for failing to use a turn signal while driving, as it considered long-term surveillance of his privacy more problematic than the traffic violations. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), lives in Changhua County and was reported 45 times within a month for failing to signal while driving when he turned into the alley where his residence is. The reports were filed by his neighbor, who set up security cameras that constantly monitored not only the alley but also the door and yard of Tseng’s house. The surveillance occurred from July
‘SAME OLD TRICK’: Even if Beijing resumes individual travel to Taiwan, it would only benefit Chinese tourism companies, the Economic Democracy Union convener said China’s 10 new “incentives” are “sugar-coated poison,” an official said yesterday, adding that Taiwanese businesses see them clearly for what they are, but that Beijing would inevitably find some local collaborators to try to drums up support. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, made the remark ahead of a news conference the General Chamber of Commerce is to hold today. The event, titled “Industry Perspectives on China’s Recent Pro-Taiwan Policies,” is expected to include representatives from industry associations — such as those in travel, hotels, food and agriculture — to request the government cooperate with China’s new measures, people familiar with
RSS