Lien Chen-tung

Lien Chen-tung (23 April 1904 – 1 December 1986) was a Chinese statesman and politician who was the tenth Republic of China Minister of the Interior.

Lien was also the first official county magistrate of Taipei County, a representative of the National Assembly, a member of the Executive Yuan, and a national policy advisor to the Office of the President.

His son Lien Chan was the seventh Vice President of the Republic of China and a former Chairman of the Kuomintang.

Lien Chen-tung was born in the West Central District of Tainan City, Taiwan.

He was the only son of Taiwanese historian Lien Heng.

He graduated from the Economics Department of Keio University in Japan in 1929 and joined the Showa New Newspaper after returning to Taiwan.

In July 1933, his father Lien Heng brought his family to stay in Shanghai.

In 1934, Lien Chen-tung and Chao Lan-k'un（趙蘭坤) got married in Beijing. She was born into a well-known family in Shenyang and was a graduate of Beijing Yanjing University.

On 28 June 1936, his father Lien Heng died of liver cancer in Shanghai at age 58, while Lien was 32 years old.

On 27 August, his wife Chao gave birth to Lien Chan in Xi'an.

The National Government intended to appoint him to be the first mayor after the reorganization of Xi’an in Xijing.

The assignment was on hold after the Second Sino-Japanese War broke out.

During the War, Lien Chen-tung served as the head of the Chongqing National Government Institute of International Studies and a member of the Xijing Preparatory Committee.

After Second World War the National Government of the Republic of China took back the rule of Taiwan and the Penghu Islands from the Empire of Japan.

In November 1945, Taiwanese Chief Executive Chen Yi appointed Lien as the first chairman of the Taipei State Reception Management Committee.

His duty was to formally take over the military affairs of Taipei.

In January 1946, Lien was the acting Taipei County Magistrate and director of the Construction Bureau.

Lien's focus was the roads and railways in Taiwan, Soon after the war they were repaired and opened to regular access.

Local facilities resumed regular operations and factories resumed production.

In February 1946, Lien's wife Chao Lan-k'un brought his 8-year-old son Lien Chan back to Taiwan to reunite with his father.

Towards the end of February 1946, Lien relocated to the Taiwan Provincial Chief Executive's Office.

He was in charge of organizing the Provincial Consultative Council.

That May, the council Inaugurated, and Lien was subsequently appointed the Secretary-General of the Taiwan Provincial Consultative Council.

In November 1947, Lien Chen-tung was elected to the first National Assembly in his hometown Tainan.

In 1948, Lien was appointed as a member of the Constitutional Supervision Committee.

In 1949, he served as the land director of the Southeast Military and Political Affairs Office and the drafting committee of the Taiwan Provincial-Local Autonomy Program.

Lien had contributions to the implementation of local autonomy and land reform.

After the National Government moved to Taiwan in 1950, Lien was appointed as a member of the Central Reconstruction Committee.

He was the only Taiwanese person among the 16 members.

He was also the president of the China Daily.

He was later reassigned as the chairman of the board of directors.

In 1953, Lien served as the fifth group director of the Kuomintang Central Party Department and was appointed as a member of the Taiwan Provincial Government and the Director of Construction.

One year later, he was transferred to the Ministry of Civil Affairs of the Taiwan Provincial Government, where he actively promoted local self-government.

He also served as the Secretary-General of the Taiwan Provincial Government.

In 1955, the government held the first census of Taiwan Province, and Lien was also the Deputy Director of the Census Department.

In 1958, Lien Chen-tung was elected to the supervisor of the Provincial Police People's Association.

On 25 March 1960, Lien was appointed as the Deputy Secretary-General of the Kuomintang and as a result, resigned as a member of the Taiwan Provincial Government and Minister of Civil Affairs.

In May, due to the reformation of the Executive Yuan, he served as the new Minister of the Interior of the Executive Yuan.

His main contributions were the establishment of the military service system and the implementation of local election government policy.

In 1961, Lien's son Lien Chan obtained a master's degree in international public law and diplomacy from the University of Chicago with the paper “Taiwan's Land Reform”.