Former premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄), who was also a former presidential adviser, died yesterday.
He was 87.
President William Lai (賴清德) offered condolences to the family, saying that Chang had led an exemplary life by making great contributions to democracy and human rights in Taiwan, and giving voice to disenfranchised people.
Photo: Taipei Times
Chang had been a defense lawyer for people prosecuted during the 1979 Kaohsiung Incident, showing a stout heart in the defense of freedom and human rights, Lai said.
He was a faithful servant of the public, having served as a lawmaker for multiple terms, Presidential Office secretary-general and chairman of the Straits Exchange Foundation, Lai said, adding that Chang played a role in cultivating Taiwan’s ties with the international community.
Chang was deeply involved in charitable causes and issues affecting the public even after retiring from politics, Lai said.
Taiwanese should remember Chang’s achievements in facilitating the development of democracy, the rule of law, human rights and public governance, he said.
Government offices have been ordered to provide for Chang’s funeral arrangements if necessary.
Former presidents Chen Sui-bian (陳水扁) and Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), as well as Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) also offered their condolences yesterday.
Born in Chiayi County in 1938, Chang graduated from National Taiwan University's law school before beginning his legal career in Kaohsiung.
A core member who co-founded the DPP in 1986, Chang served six terms as a legislator and also held posts such as DPP secretary-general, Presidential Office secretary-general, and twice as premier -- from Oct. 2000 to Feb. 2002 and from May 2007 to May 2008 -- both under Chen.
Following his one-year stint as premier for a second time from 2007 to 2008, Chang stepped back from politics and devoted himself to charitable work, mainly volunteering in prisons to support inmate rehabilitation.
Chang was appointed a senior adviser to the president when the DPP returned to power in 2016 under Tsai, a role he continued in under Lai.
While neither the Presidential Office nor the DPP disclosed the cause of death, former legislator Huang Chao- hui (黃昭輝) of the DPP said Chang passed away peacefully at home on Saturday afternoon, attributing it to natural causes associated with aging.
Additional reporting by CNA
A drunk woman was sexually assaulted inside a crowded concourse of Taipei Railway Station on Thursday last week before a foreign tourist notified police, leading to calls for better education on bystander intervention and review of security infrastructure. The man, surnamed Chiu (邱), was taken into custody on charges of sexual assault, taking advantage of the woman’s condition and public indecency. Police discovered that Chiu was a fugitive with prior convictions for vehicle theft. He has been taken into custody and is to complete his unserved six-month sentence, police said. On Thursday last week, Chiu was seen wearing a white
EVA Airways, one of the leading international carriers in Taiwan, yesterday said that it was investigating reports that a cabin crew manager had ignored the condition of a sick flight attendant, who died on Saturday. The airline made the statement in response to a post circulating on social media that said that the flight attendant on an outbound flight was feeling sick and notified the cabin crew manager. Although the flight attendant grew increasingly ill on the return flight, the manager did not contact Medlink — a system that connects the aircraft to doctors on the ground for treatment advice during medical
The Taoyuan Flight Attendants’ Union yesterday vowed to protest at the EVA Air Marathon on Sunday next week should EVA Airway Corp’s management continue to ignore the union’s petition to change rules on employees’ leave of absence system, after a flight attendant reportedly died after working on a long-haul flight while ill. The case has generated public discussion over whether taking personal or sick leave should affect a worker’s performance review. Several union members yesterday protested at the Legislative Yuan, holding white flowers and placards, while shouting: “Life is priceless; requesting leave is not a crime.” “The union is scheduled to meet with
‘UNITED FRONT’ RHETORIC: China’s TAO also plans to hold weekly, instead of biweekly, news conferences because it wants to control the cross-strait discourse, an expert said China’s plan to expand its single-entry visa-on-arrival service to Taiwanese would be of limited interest to Taiwanese and is a feeble attempt by Chinese administrators to demonstrate that they are doing something, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) spokesman Chen Binhua (陳斌華) said the program aims to facilitate travel to China for Taiwanese compatriots, regardless of whether they are arriving via direct flights or are entering mainland China through Hong Kong, Macau or other countries, and they would be able to apply for a single-entry visa-on-arrival at all eligible entry points in China. The policy aims
RSS