When Taipei's deputy representative to Washington Lee Ying-yuan (李應元) was summoned by President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) administration to return to Taipei last week, Chen had two new posts in mind for the 48-year-old Lee.
"A-bian was considering offering him either a post as the secretary-general in the Executive Yuan or as vice foreign minister," said a source close to Lee.
Perceived as a smooth mediator with good connections in the legislature, Lee was chosen to take up the post as the secretary general of the Cabinet to help premier-designate Yu Shyi-kun smooth interactions between the legislative and executive branches, sources said.
"He can complement Yu well in personality and experiences. Yu is composed while Lee is extroverted. While Yu relatively lacks experiences in the legislature, Lee is a veteran lawmaker," said an assistant to a DPP legislator.
DPP insiders said Lee was not a bad choice for his new post despite what will be a tough job pampering the legislature and senior DPP members within the Cabinet.
"A man of eloquence, Lee has superb interpersonal skills and manages to not manifest his ideology," commented a DPP staffer who declined to be named, on the former dissident once blacklisted by the then KMT government for advocating Taiwan independence while in the US.
In fact, in 2000, when Chen trusted the then DPP lawmaker with an important position as the deputy representative to the US, Chen was to offer Lee a training ground to polish his skills as a future leader -- at least within the foreign ministry system -- for the DPP, sources said.
"At first Lee had some adjustment difficulties. But he adjusted to his job well thereafter, focusing on strengthening ties with pro-independence Taiwanese groups in the US," said one of Lee's former close aides.
Lee's intimate ties to overseas Taiwanese groups supportive of Taiwan independence stemmed from his involvement in the early 1980s in the World United Formosans for Independence (WUFI), then a US-based organization supporting Taiwan's independence.
Such involvement led Lee and his wife Laura Huang (
Born to a farmer's family in Yulin County in southern Taiwan in 1953, Lee earned his first degree in public health at National Taiwan University (NTU). He then received his master's degree in health policy and management from Harvard University before earning his PhD in health economics from the University of North Carolina in 1988.
Although NTU gave the couple letters of appointment in 1988 and 1989, the Taiwan authorities shut the door to the young academics due to Lee's blacklist status.
In 1990, Lee returned to Taiwan through illegal channels as part of WUFI's plan to move its headquarters back to the island.
During the next 14 months, Lee played hide-and-seek with intelligence agents around Taiwan, always carrying a razor, a toothbrush and toothpaste with him in case he was imprisoned.
Even after he was arrested on charges of sedition, Lee remained calm, according to letters he wrote during his time in prison.
In 1993 and 1997, Lee was defeated during the DPP's primary elections for Yunlin commissioner. Following his flop in Yunlin's primary election in 1993, he was elected to the legislature for the first time in 1995 from Taipei County. Subsequently, he shifted his attention to northern Taiwan, even considering running for Taipei mayor in the future, sources said.
In 1997, Lee served as the campaign manager for the DPP candidate Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) during the Taipei county chief election.
In 1999, he helped orchestrate campaigns for the DPP candidate Lin Chung-li (林中禮) in the Yunlin county commissioner by-election, "staying at the campaign headquarters 24 hours a day," said a former DPP staffer who joined Lee in the race.
Lee's ability to help Chen fight a successful presidential election in Yulin and Taipei counties was instrumental in catching Chen's attention, paving the way for the elevation of Lee following Chen's victory in the race, sources said.
DPP lawmaker Chen Chi-mai (
"The DPP failed to emerge as the majority party in the legislature, retaining a rather unstable position there. The presidential election in two years time will further complicate the scenario in the legislative branch," Chen said, saying these trends could obstruct Lee's work in helping policy initiatives pass legislative scrutiny.
In the 225-member legislature, the DPP won 87 parliamentary seats in the Dec. 1 elections, replacing the once formidable KMT as the biggest party in the chamber and thus strengthening Chen's hand. The KMT won 68 seats, down from 123, while the People First Party won 46 seats.
Chen Shui-bian has been dogged by hostile opposition parties, which dominated the outgoing legislature and blocked the government's initiatives at almost every turn.
"It also worries me that Lee might find it time-consuming to integrate opinions in the Cabinet, especially those from DPP members senior to him," Chen Chi-mai said. "But I am sure he'll do a good job."
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