Nationality Taiwanese Siblings Koo Chen-fu | Spouse Michelle Wang | |
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Born 15 October 1926 (age 90) ( 1926-10-15 ) Lukang, Taiwan Parents Koo Hsien-jung, Yoshiko Iwase Similar Koo Chen‑fu, Koo Hsien‑jung, Jeffrey Koo Sr, Peng Ming‑min, Su Beng | ||
Koo Kwang-ming (Chinese: 辜寬敏; pinyin: Gū Kuānmǐn; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Ko͘ Khoan-bín, born on 15 October 1926) is a Taiwanese politician, businessman and independence activist.
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Family background
Koo was born into a life of privilege. He was the eighth son of Koo Hsien-jung, a prominent Lukang businessman who had relocated to Taipei at the time of the Treaty of Shimonoseki, when Taiwan was ceded by the Qing Dynasty to the Empire of Japan. He swiftly made common cause with the Japanese colonial authorities in Taiwan and grew extremely wealthy during the period of Japanese rule. The family proved adept at bending with the political winds, and Koo's older brother Koo Chen-fu became a confidant of Chiang Kai-shek. Koo Kwang-ming, however, went into exile in Japan after the 228 massacre, where he lived for decades as an advocate for Taiwanese independence.
Political career
In 1972 Koo travelled in secret from Japan via Thailand to Taiwan. He met Chiang Ching-kuo, son of ruler Chiang Kai-shek to argue for the lifting of martial law. As a consequence he was expelled from the Japanese chapter of WUFI. The younger Chiang invited Koo to end his exile to "share in the affairs of the country". Koo accepted, but on landing in Taiwan was upset to see his return described as "surrender" in an evening newspaper. He replied that he "had not returned to surrender, but to bring my influence to bear [on the situation]". Influential Independence activist Su Beng contradicted this assertion, accusing Koo of "surrendering to the Chiang government".
2008 DPP leadership bid
After the DPP's comprehensive defeat in the 2008 presidential elections, a leadership election was held to find the new party chairperson. Koo, then 82 years old, stood as a candidate. The campaign was notable for controversial remarks made by Koo about the suitability of an unmarried woman to lead, widely interpreted as an attack on the eventual winner, Tsai Ing-wen, who became the first elected female head of the party.
Philanthropy
In 2014 Koo announced that he would be giving away half of his fortune, NT$3 billion, through his New Taiwan Peace Foundation. This included prizes such as an award for Taiwanese historical fiction.