A Chinese national running for a student representative post at National Taiwan University (NTU) has become the subject of controversy amid claims that she is a member of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and has extensive experience in CCP-affiliated youth organizations.
Dong Menghang (董夢杭), a doctoral student running for student representative at NTU’s College of Management, studied at China’s Chongqing University before beginning her studies in Taiwan.
Dong’s background has sparked a debate among NTU students, with some saying that the student council would not be affected by the presence of a CCP member, while others were against the idea.
The issue first came to light when NTU student Chiang Yu-hsin (江昱欣) posted information on Facebook about several CCP-affiliated positions that Dong has held, which he found on Chongqing University’s Communist Youth League (CYL) Web site. The positions included deputy secretary of the school’s CYL committee and membership in the municipal CYL.
While Dong refused to respond to media queries, her biography on the campus electoral bulletin listed seven years of experience in “student work,” a phrase used in China that encompasses a range of student organization efforts ranging from entertainment events to political issues.
Chiang, who once served as speaker of the NTU Student Council, said he was not against Dong’s candidacy based on her nationality, but rather her long history of involvement in CCP-affiliated activities.
“In contrast with Cai Boyi’s (蔡博藝) passion for social movements, Dong’s ‘grand record’ in the Communist Youth League worries me,” Chiang said, referring to a student activist from China who stirred controversy when she ran for the student presidency at Tamkang University.
The values represented by the CCP could come into conflict with those of NTU’s student government, which has long held a tradition of civic democracy and dissent against authority, Chiang said.
Although he is not against Dong joining the race, Chiang advised his fellow students not to vote for her.
Other students were critical of Chiang’s claims, including NTU Graduate Students Association president Sherry Chou (周芷萱).
Membership in the CCP or the CYL is nothing surprising in an authoritarian single-party state like China, Chou said, adding that many high-achieving students are granted membership.
“Most people who join the CCP are in it for their own personal benefits, instead of reflecting official ideology,” Chou said, adding that even if Dong was truly a “red” candidate, which was unlikely, the NTU Student Council should have no trouble organizing events that go against the CCP’s agenda.
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