Taipei, 6 August 1998
On 6 August 1998, DPP legislator Lu Hsiu-yi passed away in Tamsui,
near Taipei. He had been suffering from lung cancer since 1995. He
was a sparkling personality with a great sense of humor. He also had
great courage, and was one of the first overseas Taiwanese to come
out and run for election in Taiwan.
He was already politically active when he studied in Europe in the
1970s. He studied at the University of Leuven in Belgium and
received his Ph.D. in political science from the University of Paris
in Nanterre in 1980.
After returning to Taiwan, Professor Lu taught at Chinese Culture
University and National Tsinghua University. However, he was
arrested in January 1983 and held incommunicado for 1 1/2 months,
during which he was interrogated harshly, sometimes for a couple of
days in a row. After a kangaroo trial he was sentenced and served a
three-year prison term from 1983 through 1986 on a charge of "sedition"
for promoting Taiwan independence.
Later he would joke that his hair turned grey during this prison
period, but that this made him look more distinguished!!
In 1989, he was one of the first overseas Taiwanese to run for
public office, and he was elected to a seat in the Legislative Yuan,
representing Taipei County. He was re-elected in 1992, and again in
1995.
In November 1997, although terminally ill, Lu rejected his
doctor's advice and went out to stump for the DPP's candidate for
the Taipei County magistrate election, Su Chen-chang.
Magistrate Su rushed to the hospital early Thursday morning to pay
tribute to Lu. "Lu's passing is a great loss to the DPP. I
appreciate his campaigning for me. I'll redouble my efforts to
improve the Taipei County Government's administration to fulfill his
wish and repay his assistance."
Many other leading members of the DPP, including party Chairman
Lin Yi-hsiung and Taipei Mayor Chen Shui-bian, also visited the
hospital to extend condolences to Lu's family. Lin praised Lu as a
courageous man, not only for his fight for Taiwan's democratization
but also for his fight against cancer. "I'm saddened by his
death. I has lost a good partner in fight for the DPP's cause."
Taipei Mayor Chen said Lu's passing was not only a loss to the DPP
but also a loss to the whole of Taiwan. "We have much to learn
from his optimism and dedication to promoting Taiwan's
democratization."
We will miss him, and we wish his wife and children much strength
in these difficult days, weeks, and months ahead.
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