Kao Chin Su-mei
| May Chin Kao Chin Su-mei MLY | |
|---|---|
|
高金素梅 Ciwas Ali 吉娃斯·阿麗 | |
|
May Chin in a March 2008 protest | |
| Member of the Legislative Yuan | |
|
Assumed office 1 February 2002 | |
| Constituency | Highland Aborigines |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
21 September 1965 (age 50) Heping, Taichung County |
| Nationality |
 Republic of China |
| Political party | Non-Partisan Solidarity Union |
| Alma mater | Minzu University of China |
Kao Chin Su-mei, stage name May Chin (see names, born September 21, 1965) is a Taiwanese politician and a former singer and actress. After having acted since the mid-1980s, she was elected into the Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China (Taiwan) in December 2001 and re-elected in 2004, 2008 and 2012, all in the Highland Aborigines electoral district. She is currently a member of the Non-Partisan Solidarity Union and a strong advocate of aboriginal rights. She is also associated with the Pan-Blue Coalition and harbors pro-unification and anti-Japan views.
Early life
May Chin was born in Heping Township, Taichung County (now part of Taichung City). Her father, a Manchu (from mainland China), and her mother, a Taiwanese Aborigine of the Atayal tribe, named her Chin Su-mei. In the mid-1980s, she stood for election to be a representative of Taiwanese Aborigines within the Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China (Taiwan), during which she took on the Chinese surname of her Taiwanese Aborigine mother, hence becoming Kao Chin Su-mei (Chinese: 高金素梅; pinyin: Gāo Jīn Sùméi; Wade–Giles: Kao Chin Su-mei). Her Ayatal name is Ciwas Ali (Chinese: 吉娃斯·阿麗; pinyin: Jíwásī Ālì; Wade–Giles: Chi-wa-ssu A-li) and May Chin remains her stage name.
Early career
- Wedding Banquet (1993)
- May Jean (1994)
- Woman Soup (1999)
May Chin also published some 10 albums and showed up in various local TV series and commercials between mid-1980s and early 2000s. Besides acting, in mid-1990s May Chin ran a wedding photography service shop in Taipei. However this shop burned down in 1996 and the fire claimed six lives.
Political career
Since entering the Legislative Yuan after elected in the 2001 Republic of China legislative election, May Chin has been noted for her outspoken views, traditional Atayal costume and face paint in the shape of traditional Atayal tattoo work reserved for married women. May Chin has also been tightly associated with the Pan-Blue Coalition, especially in close cooperation with the People First Party. She is also noted for her anti-Japan and China-friendly standpoints, and even protested in front of the Yasukuni Shrine in an effort to remove the enshrined spirits of Taiwanese Aboriginal soldiers who died fighting for the Japanese army during World War II, as well as sued Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi for visiting Yasukuni Shrine. (These events were retold in the 2007 documentary film Yasukuni.)
She was elected again as the member of Legislative Yuan after the 2008 Republic of China legislative election held on 12 January 2008.
| No. | Candidate | Party | Votes | Ratio | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Syue Yi Jhen (薛宜蓁) | Civil Party | 443 | 0.53% | |
| 2 | Kung Wen-chi (孔文吉) |  Kuomintang |
22,391 | 26.54% | Yes |
| 3 | Chien Tung-ming | Kuomintang |
22,659 | 26.86% | Yes |
| 4 | Hou Jin Jhu (侯金助) |  Democratic Progressive Party |
4,420 | 5.24% | |
| 5 | May Chin |  Non-Partisan Solidarity Union |
20,012 | 23.72% | Yes |
| 6 | Lin Chun De (林春德) |  People First Party |
14,265 | 16.91% | |
| 7 | Song Ren Huo (宋仁和) |  Taiwan Constitution Association |
168 | 0.20% |
On 19 August 2009, Ms Chin met with the President of the People's Republic of China, Hu Jintao.[1] At the meeting, President Hu expressed his deep sorrow and condolences for the typhoon victims in Taiwan to an actor-turned-politician Kao who led a delegation of her fellow ethnic minorities in Taiwan to visit the mainland. Hu added that "People on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are of one family and Chinese people have a long tradition of lending a hand to those in danger and difficulties."[2]
As a parliament member, Ms. Chin is dedicated to the benefits of Taiwanese Aborigines, hence receiving strong support from her constituents. [3]
Personal life
Never married, she was in a relationship with Hong Kong actor Kenny Ho in early 1990s.[4] She also had a long and lasting extramarital affair with the Minister of the Interior Lee Hong-yuan between mid-2000s and early 2010s.[5] In 1998, May Chin was diagnosed with liver cancer. She recovered after a surgery.
References
- ↑ http://english.gov.cn/2009-08/19/content_1396500.htm
- ↑ http://english.gov.cn/2009-08/19/content_1396500.htm
- ↑ http://www.worldjournal.com/view/full_entertainment/7797100/article-%E8%97%9D%E4%BA%BA%E5%BE%9E%E6%94%BF-%E6%88%90%E7%B8%BE%E6%AF%94%E4%B8%80%E6%AF%94?instance=en_bull_tw
- ↑ http://mag.udn.com/mag/people/storypage.jsp?f_MAIN_ID=159&f_SUB_ID=4057&f_ART_ID=185092
- ↑
External links
- May Chin at the Internet Movie Database
- Personal Blog (in Traditional Chinese)
- Washing away vanity, Taiwan's Aborigines
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